ST. CLOUD, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Crookston volleyball team fell in a five-set thriller 3-2 (25-22, 22-25, 25-21, 20-25, 15-11) to St. Cloud State University Sat., Sept. 17 at Halenbeck Hall in St. Cloud, Minn.  The Golden Eagles drop to 4-6 (0-2 NSIC) with Saturday's hard-fought loss, while St. Cloud State improves to 5-5 (1-1 NSIC).

The Golden Eagles hit .212 for the match with 55 kills for the game. UMC again struggled in the service game with just eight service aces and 20 service errors on the match.

Minnesota Crookston had great balance for the match. Kelci Green (R-Jr., MH, Anoka, Minn.) led the way with a fantastic outing with 15 kills and just three errors, as she hit .353 for the match. Kali Erickson (Sr., OH, Fargo, N.D.) also had a strong performance with 11 kills and a .143 hitting percentage. Callie Schapekahm (So., MH, Eagan, Minn.) added nine kills and hit .318. Maggie Perrel (R-Jr., OH, New Germany, Minn.) also added nine kills.

Sierra Trost (Sr., S, Ham Lake, Minn.) led the offense with 46 assists on the match. Trost averaged 9.2 assists per match.

Defensively, UMC looked to Ali Schueler (R-Fr., DS/Lib., Howards Grove, Wis.), who had one of her best matches of her young career Schueler had 28 assists, finishing with 5.6 digs per set. Perrel added 14 digs, while Becca Vandenheuvel (Jr., DS, Cannon Falls, Minn.) chipped in 10.

St. Cloud State hit .231 and had 57 kills on the match. The Huskies were led by 16 kills from Shannon Klink, who hit .171 for the match. Micah Nier added 11 kills and hit .476 for the match. Krista Kuglin added 10 kills for the match.

At setter, Marissa Kline led the way with 47 assists.

Defensively, Clara Krenz led the way with 24 digs, while Nicole Miller and Klink each added 16 and Kline had 12.  

UMC and St. Cloud State went toe-to-toe in all five sets. The Golden Eagles and Huskies were knotted up 22-22 late in the first set, but a kill from Nier and a service ace from Miller would lead St. Cloud State to the 25-22 set win.

The Golden Eagles bounced back in the second frame. UMC would take the set 25-22 on a Schapekahm kill.

UMC would lead the third frame late 21-20, but St. Cloud State would respond with five-consecutive points to take the set 25-21 to go ahead 2-1.

The Golden Eagles would again respond in the fourth set as they took it 25-20 on a Kassi Green (R-Jr., OH, Anoka, Minn.) service ace.

St. Cloud State would get out early in the deciding fifth set. UMC would close the gap to 13-11 on a Kine ball handling error. However, kills from Klink and Nier would lead the Huskies to the 15-11 set win to take the match 3-2.

The Golden Eagles will head to Bemidji State University Tues., Sept. 20 for a 7 p.m. match at BSU Gymnasium. UMC fell 3-0 to Bemidji State in a non-conference match in Sioux Falls, S.D. earlier this month.