Box score
ST. PAUL, Minn.- The ninth-ranked University of Indianapolis was eliminated from the NCAA Division Volleyball Championships Thursday with a straight set loss to top-ranked Concordia, St. Paul (25-17, 25-17, 25-22). The jam-packed Gangelhoff Center witnessed very few mistakes from the Golden Bears, who broke the Greyhounds 24-match win streak while extending their D-II record unbeaten run to 72 matches.
The Golden Bears (35-0) earned an early lead and were able to maintain it throughout the opening set. The home team started quickly, scoring four of the first five points and eight of the first 12 to force a UIndy timeout. Later, three unanswered UIndy tallies trimmed it to 14-11 CU, but the playoff-tested Bears allowed just six more points before taking the 1-0 advantage.
UIndy (38-2) managed a solid .270 team hitting percentage in the first frame, but Concordia one-upped that by hitting at a .516 clip, thanks in part to six kills from First Team All-American Emily Palkert.
Down 2-0 in the second, the Hounds took advantage of a free ball with a kill from sophomore middle Courtney Anglemyer (Elkhart, Ind./Elkhart Memorial), but Concordia was again able to stay in front by building a 8-3 lead.
After calling a timeout, Indianapolis crept to within two at 9-7 thanks to a double block from Anglemyer and Kristina Kerrigan (Muncie, Ind./Muncie Central) and a second-hit kill from Cheneta Morrison (Fort Wayne, Ind./Ft. Wayne Snider).
The Hounds would not get closer, however, as the Bears used a four-point run to build a cushion before going on to a second straight 25-17 set victory.
UIndy played its best set in the see-saw third that featured 14 ties. After the Greyhounds took their first lead of the match at 5-4, Concordia fought to earn a slight 12-10 advantage. UIndy then ran off five straight behind the serve of Kyleigh Turner (Muncie, Ind./Cowan), a rally that included two Kerrigan kills.
The relentless Golden Bears tied it again at 17 all, and later with the count 21-21, they scored three in a row to push the Hounds to the brink. UIndy fought off one match point, but Concordia put it away with a Sadie Kessler kill.
Kerrigan finished with team highs in kills (13) and attack attempts (39). Morrison amassed 31 assists and nine digs, Turner led the Hounds with 17 digs and Amy Oldenburg (Elkhart, Ind./Elkhart Memorial) chipped in 10 digs.
Concordia, St. Paul lives on to defend its national title another day with a match versus second-ranked Cal. State San Bernardino in Friday night’s second national semifinal. The Golden Bears have won the last two D-II championships and each of the previous three Central Region crowns.
As for UIndy, it not only captured its first regional trophy this year, but also set new single-season marks for victories (38) and winning percentage (.950), surpassing the 33 wins and .892 percentage of its 2007 counterpart.
As UIndy’s lone senior this year, Turner finishes her career with 2,574 career digs, easily a program record, as well as 129 career aces, good for a share of ninth all-time. The two-time All-American contributed to the winningest four-year span in school history, leading the Hounds to a stellar 124-26 (.827) mark and three straight NCAA appearances in time on campus.
Note: The match’s official attendance was listed at 1,269…Video of many of the Elite Eight festivities can be viewed for free, including the pre-game press conference, the All-American and Elite 88 presentations, and the post-game press conference.