Augustana women’s volleyball sweeps Monmouth in three sets

MONMOUTH, Ill. -- The Augustana Vikings women's volleyball team swept the Monmouth Scots on Tuesday in three sets.

Set one — Augustana 25, Monmouth 22

Augustana came out aggressively, scoring the first eight points of the match. Monmouth started the run with a pair of attack errors, followed by a service ace by Abby Kirchner, and kills from Sophia Sommesi and Alita Folkening. Monmouth had another error before Sommesi tallied a kill and a second ace from Kirchner. The fast start put the Vikings in control at 8-0.

Monmouth answered with a point, but Augustana continued to control the early portion of the set. The Vikings built a 13-4 advantage before Monmouth began to chip away to cut the margin to 13-7.

The Vikings responded by reestablishing their cushion. A Monmouth setting error, a Sommesi kill, and an attack error that was forced by a Folkening block helped Augustana move ahead 19-9. Monmouth again fought back, however, scoring several points in succession to make it 20-12. Augustana answered with a Sommesi kill, while Carmela Carbone and the Vikings' defense helped maintain the advantage.

The closing stretch became much tighter. Monmouth went on a late 5-0 run, cutting what had been a comfortable Augustana lead down to 22-19. The Vikings answered with a Carbone kill, but Monmouth continued to pressure them, eventually pulling within 24-22. Augustana finished the set when Monmouth committed a service error, giving the Vikings a 25-22 opening-set victory.

Set two — Augustana 25, Monmouth 20

The second set was much more competitive from the beginning. Neither team established immediate control, with the score tied several times during the opening points. Augustana briefly moved ahead 4-2, but Monmouth responded with a pair of points before the Vikings regained a 6-4 advantage.

Monmouth then put together its strongest stretch of the set, scoring five consecutive points to turn a 6-5 deficit into an 11-5 lead. Augustana responded with a service ace from Lanah Queckboerner and began gradually working its way back into the set. Carbone supplied a kill to make it 9-12, and the Vikings continued to trade points with Monmouth.

The turning point came in the middle portion of the set. With Monmouth leading 17-14, Augie received a kill from Elle Jones and then tied the set at 17-17 after a Monmouth attack error. The teams exchanged points to reach 18-18, but Augustana regained the lead at 19-18 and followed with another point on a Monmouth attack error.

After Monmouth tied the set at 20-20, a kill gave the home team a brief 21-20 lead, but Augustana answered with three straight points. That put the Vikings ahead 24-20. Augustana then secured the set, 25-20, on another Monmouth setting error.

Set three — Augustana 25, Monmouth 15

The Vikings again came out quickly in the third set, taking a 4-0 lead. The Scots answered by scoring three straight points, but the Vikings regained the advantage at 7-5 with another ace from Folkening and a Jones kill.

The teams remained within a few points of each other through the early stages, with Monmouth pulling within 8-7 and later 9-8. Augustana then began to create separation. After a Monmouth attack error, Jones delivered a kill, and Taryn Jones followed with back-to-back service aces. Another Monmouth attack error extended the run and pushed the Vikings ahead 16-8.

Monmouth managed to slow the run and cut the deficit to 16-11, but Augustana responded with points from Sommesi and Carbone before Grace Lichthardt entered the attack and delivered a kill. The Vikings continued to control the set, building a 20-11 lead.

From there, Augie maintained its cushion. Lichthardt and Jones added kills, and the Vikings reached match point at 24-14 after a block from Alyse Murphy-Spiteri and a Monmouth attack error. Monmouth scored once more, but the match ended on another Monmouth service error, giving Augustana the 25-15 set win and the 3-0 sweep.

Jones led the team with nine kills, while Sommesi had eight and Carbone finished the night with seven. Kirchner collected 20 assists in the win, while Queckboerner had 15 digs. Kirchner and Jones had three service aces apiece.

With the win, Augie moves to 3-4 on the season and will be back in action on Sept. 18-19 for the UW-Platteville Tournament.