Crookston, Minn. – At this point, Golden Eagle volleyball might as well be known as the 'comeback kids'. On Friday night, they were finally able to knock down that proverbial wall and defeat Minot State in five sets (25-21, 19-25, 20-25, 25-23, 15-13).
 
The Golden Eagles were paced by career nights from Audrey Cariveau (Fr., OH, Kevil, Kent.) and Mara Weisensel (Jr., MH, New Ulm, Minn.), who each finished with 17 kills.
 
The Golden Eagles improve to 2-9 (1-2 NSIC), while the Beavers remain winless at 0-10 (0-3 NSIC).
 
Set One
The energy inside Lysaker Gymnasium was electric and the maroon and gold continued that on the floor, jumping out to a 9-2 start, capped off by a Cariveau service ace.
 
That would force a Beaver timeout and the Beavers would settle into the first set.
 
Kora Norland (So., S, Fosston, Minn.) would serve four straight times, helping the Golden Eagles jump out to a 18-10 lead, but the Beavers would eventually crawl back into the set, making it 20-17.
 
The Golden Eagles would have set point three different times and would finally finish off set one with a 25-21 win to take a 1-0 lead in the match.
 
Set Two
Set two would be all Minot State. Minnesota Crookston would lead 4-3, led by another service ace, this time by Layne Whaley (So., DS, Ashland, Neb.).
 
Minot State would eventually take a nine point lead at 21-12. A pair of attacking errors would help the Golden Eagles inch back within six, but that is as close they would get.
 
The Beavers would win the second set 25-19.
 
Set Three
With the match tied at one, the third set would be a swing set.
 
A Natalie Koke (R-Sr., S, Caledonia, Wis.) service ace and Cariveau kill would propel the maroon and gold to a 3-2 lead in the third set.
 
The two teams would go back-and-forth, being tied at four, eight and ten early on in the set.
 
Minot State would go on a 5-0 run, taking a 13-10 lead, but two Beaver errors would get the Golden Eagles back within one at 13-12.
 
Minnesota Crookston would tie things up again at 14, but Minot State would once again go on a run to take an 18-14 lead.
 
The Golden Eagles would try to chip away, but they would be held off by the Beavers, who would win the third set, 25-20.
 
Set Four
Down two sets to one, it was make or break time for the Golden Eagles, but Minot State would open set four with a huge start, leading 7-3.
 
Much like they have all season, the Golden Eagles would chip away at a lead.
 
Things weren't looking good for the 402 fans in attendance, as the Golden Eagles would trail 18-12 late in the fourth set.
 
Minot State would trail 20-15, but a pair of huge kills from Cariveau and Maria Jose Bustos Garcia (R-Sr., MH, Cartagena, Columbia) and another pair of Beaver errors would cut the lead back to one.
 
Finally, Minnesota Crookston would take the lead at 22-21.
 
Minot State would tie things up at 23, but juniors Weisensel and Charlee Krieg (Jr., OH, Cavalier, N.D.) would send the fans inside Lysaker into a raucous, coming all the way back to win the set by two.
 
Set Five
In an exciting match, why not go five? Minot State would lead 4-0, but the Golden Eagles would score the next three.
 
Minot State would take complete control of the set, taking a 9-3 lead.
 
The Golden Eagles would continue to take it point after point. After trailing 11-6, the Weisensel show would continue, collecting back-to-back kills and a Bailey Schaefer (So., OH, Brandon, Minn.) service ace made it 11-9.
 
The Golden Eagles would take a 13-12 lead, but Minot State would knot it up at 13.
 
When in doubt, go to the freshman. Cariveau would send all of Golden Eagle nation happy with two straight kills to win the set 15-13 and the match, three sets to two.
 
Individual Stats
Weisensel and Cariveau would each collect 17 kills in the match. Weisensel hit .387 in the match. Krieg finished with nine kills, while Koke finished with five kills, 38 assists and nine digs. Whaley finished with 14 digs, while Madison Klimek (Sr., DS, Oakdale, Minn.) finished with 11.
 
The Golden Eagles finished with 11 service aces in the match.
 
What's Next
The Golden Eagles will look for the weekend sweep tomorrow, as they host the University of Mary inside Lysaker Gymnasium. First serve is set for 2 PM.