Box Score Mayville, N.D. - The Comets Volleyball team hosted the Valley City State Vikings in a North Star conference battle in the Lewy Lee where there wasn't many empty seats. Behind a raucous crowd, Mayville State seized momentum late in each set enroute to a 3-0 sweep.

Head Coach Katie Aasen said after the game, "It was such a group effort, our bench was amazing, our crowd was electric, I mean it truly was just a huge group effort tonight in the Lewy Lee."

Neither team could claim an early lead, the lead ping-ponging back and forth with 12 ties in set one. The Comets finally found some breathing room with a couple of Nicole Kortan kills to turn an 18-18 score into a 21-18 advantage. Mayville State held on and Elora Passa finished set one with a kill for a 25-22 victory.

Kortan continued to pace the offense in set two, and the Comets jumped to an early 6-3 lead. The Vikings came right back with three straight points to knot the game at 6. Once again, the teams played tug-of-war with the score, neither team able to gain a significant advantage.

Valley City finally broke out with a four point run to lead 19-16. Mayville State stormed back with a 7-1 run behind two aces by Kylee Baumgarn. Samantha Passa and Madison McKinnon teamed up for a block to give the Comets the set two win 25-22.

The Vikings raced out to an early 9-3 lead and looked to extend the match to a fourth set. The Comets slowly chipped away at the lead and an Elora Passa kill tied the score at 15. Valley City responded by scoring the next four points to lead 19-15.

"Every player contributed offensively consistently throughout the match. We had huge momentum plays which helps you do things like come back from a 5-0 run at the begging of the third set," added Aasen.

Following a timeout, Mayville State regained their balance and eventually tied the game at 21 apiece after an Emily Condon ace. Consecutive kills by Kortan and Samantha Passa gave the Comets a 23-22 lead, and a block by Kortan and Thyra Peterick finished the sweep by a score of 26-24.

Aasen ended with, "When looking ahead to Friday, it's clear to us that anyone can beat anyone in this conferene and winning tonight doesn't mean a win now will be any easier to earn. If anything it only makes it tougher moving forward. But what makes it so special and meaningful is that our wins are earned and only come from hard fought battles regardless of the team across net."

McKinnon notched 11 kills to lead the team, with Elora Passa (10) and Kortan (9) close behind. Elora Passa added 26 assists with Peyton Richter chipping in 18. 

"Defense gave everything they had to keep the play going until our offense could terminate," Aasen commented after Natalie Hadrava dug out 26 Viking attacks and Peterick and McKinnon each blocked four attacks on the night.

The win boosts the Comets record to 13-7, 4-3 in conference. Mayville State welcomes Dickinson State on Friday for another conference matchup, first serve at 6:00pm. This game will be dedicated to Breast Cancer Awareness and everyone is encouraged to wear pink!