Box Score Mitchell, S.D. - The Comets Volleyball team traveled to Mitchell, S.D. to take on the (RV) Dakota Wesleyan Tigers in a non-conference tilt. The Tigers used late runs to take the match in 3 sets, 25-15, 25-18 and 27-25.
"There are many things we can take from tonight's match, including both things we can control and cannot control," said head coach Katie Aasen. "Statistically, our hitting percentage was too low although there were other contributing factors and ultimately, we, as a team, we have abilities and skills to dictate the outcome of the match."
Dakota Wesleyan started strong and jumped on to an early 5-2 lead in set one. Behind three kills from
Elora Passa, the Comets stormed back to take a 9-7 lead. The Tigers responded with five straight points of their own. After a Comets time out, they battled back to tie the score at 15. Unfortunately, that would be the last point of set 1 for Mayville State as the Tigers ripped off 10 straight points to win 25-15.
Three early kills by
Thyra Peterick gave the Comets an early 8-5 lead in set twp. With Mayville State clinging to an 11-10 lead, Dakota Wesleyan went on a 7-1 run to take a 17-12 lead. The Comets battled back by scoring six of the next seven points to tie the game at 18. However, once again Dakota Wesleyan would go on a run to finish the set, notching seven straight points to take set two 25-18.
Mayville State grabbed the lead early in set three at 10-6, with
Samantha Passa spiking four kills in that stretch. Set 3 tightened from there, with neither team able to extend a lead.
Madison McKinnon added three kills to turn a 20-19 deficit into a 24-21 advantage. The Tigers resilience appeared again, coming back with crucial points to finish off the Comets 27-25.
"They come in everyday hungry to learn and to get better, they utilize every opportunity and that's exactly what we will continue to do," said Aasen. "Because win or lose at any point in the season, there is always work to do."
McKinnon led the team with 10 kills, with
Elora Passa (19) and Peyton Richter (12) combining for 31 assists.
Natalie Hadrava added 17 digs, with
Emily Condon (14) and
Samantha Passa (10) also reaching double figures.
Aasen also added, "If there's one thing we know about our conference any team can beat any team on any given night so it's important that we focus on what we need to do as a team in order to dictate how we finish out the regular season. All of our remain matches are huge games for both teams involved, that's the best kind of volleyball to play and next week, we get to do it in our favorite place surrounded by our favorite people."
"What I want for us is to go out, have the time of their life, and leave everything out on the floor," Aasen stated.
The loss drops the Comets record to 12-7, 3-3 in the conference. This match completes the Comets non-conference schedule. Mayville State will host Valley City State on October 18
th, first serve is 6:00pm.
