By: Jake Krier, UWEC Sports Information
WINONA, Minn. (blugolds.com) - In a rematch from a hot and muggy night in Zorn Arena a year ago, the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Blugolds headed to Winona this year to take on the Saint Mary's Cardinals. The Cardinals are the first of six matches against Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) opponents this season for UW-Eau Claire.
Continuing their trend of winning every set in the early parts of the 2016 season, Saint Mary's took the opener by a score of 27-25. Last week's Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Offensive Player of the Week, Heather Sawchuk (Jr.-Roseville, MN/Cretin-Derham Hall), added to her team-leading total with five kills in the first set.
Following the bonus action in set one, the second tilt went in the Blugolds favor 25-15, in large part due to a 15-3 run to close it out. The rally came after an Eau Claire timeout when trailing 10-12 at the time, as the Blugolds then tallied seven straight points. The team accounted for a .353 attacking percentage in the set win.
After handing the Cardinals their first set loss of the year, Eau Claire doubled it up by winning the third frame 25-20. A key spot came when the Blugolds stretched their late lead with two big points out of a timeout, making the score 23-19. From there, they finished it off in the all-important third set.
The Blugolds took advantage of three consecutive Cardinal missed serves late in the fourth and final set on way to a 25-18 win, securing their fourth straight victory on the season.
Among the top hitters, Madelyn Pashibin (So.-Minneapolis, MN/Minneapolis Southwest) recorded double-digit kills with ten, while Katrina Raskie (Sr.-Weston, WI/D.C. Everest) used an error-free night for an impressive .533 hitting efficiency.
The one-two punch of Sawchuk (team-leading 27 kills) and Raskie combined for 35 put-aways on the evening. Raskie also led the team in digs with 17, while Talia Jaskulske (Jr.-Maplewood, MN/North St. Paul) closely followed with 16. Madison Surprise (So.-Appleton, WI/Kimberly) notched 40 assists in the match as well.
"After that first set, we became more aggressive," said assistant coach Tim Upward. "Our serving picked up, we played more crisp and fundamentally better all-around, and we put pressure on our opponent."
Eau Claire's next action comes this weekend, as the Blugolds take part in the Augsburg Invitational. Friday night, they'll face UM-Morris and Northwestern, and on Saturday, they'll round out the tournament against MIAC opponents St. Thomas and Augsburg.
Follow the action for all sports this season on Blugold Game Day.
