Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 North Sioux City, S.D. - The Mayville State Volleyball team was back on the road this weekend to participate in the Labor Day Classic hosted by College of St. Mary's in North Sioux City, S.D.  The Comets took on the Evangel Valor and the #2 ranked team in the country Concordia (Neb.) Bulldogs. The Comets split the day, sweeping Evangel and losing three tough sets to the Bulldogs.

Game 1 vs. Evangel:
Set one started with both teams trying to find a rhythm. Mayville State collected five straight points to turn a 10-10 tie into a 15-10 advantage. Natalie Hadrava's two aces in this stretch were critical. Two more aces, this time by Tori Richter, gave the Comets their biggest lead at 22-15. The Valor attempted a spirited comeback, but an Elora Passa kill gave Mayville State a 25-22 win.

The second set the Comets' defense was on point, leading to several Evangel errors and a 12-4 lead. Once again the Valor clawed back, at one point trimming the lead to 3 but could get no closer as the Comets get the win 25-18.

Looking for the sweep, Mayville State got out to a quick 10-5 lead, but Evangel charged back to reclaim the lead at 12-11 in set three. The Valor managed to get ahead 21-18 but the Comets finished with a flourish, winning seven of the last nine points to win the match 25-23.

Head coach Katie Aasen said "It was good to get that first set, both teams played hard but we were able to finish and carry our momentum into the second set. Same thing in the third set, those close ones can go either way, but we battled from start to finish even when things weren't going our way."

Elora Passa added another triple-double to her resume with 11 kills, 18 assists and 11 digs. Nicole Kortan (9) and Madison McKinnon (8) combined for 17 kills. Payton Richter added 15 assists, Natalie Hadrava tallied 13 digs and 3 aces, and Samantha Passa collected 7 kills and 11 digs.
 
Game 2 vs. No. 2 Concordia (Neb.)
The Comets returned to the court in the early evening to battle No. 2 Concordia (Neb.). When asked about their plan going into the game, Aasen said "Our plan was to play smart, serve tough, focus on our block and adjust it as needed to help slow down their offense. Going up against big hitters, we know they are going to get their kills, but our back court defense worked really hard to keep the ball in play."

Mayville State was not intimidated by the Bulldogs' ranking and took an early set one lead at 15-12. Samantha Passa and Thyra Peterick notched multiple kills early in the game. The Bulldogs rattled off a 10-2 run and managed to hold off the Comets by a score of 25-20.

In set two, the Comets once again staked themselves an early lead at 9-4. The offense showed off its depth as multiple players added kills to keep the Bulldogs at bay and got to match point at 24-19. However, Mayville State could not land the knockout blow as Concordia stormed back with the last seven points to win 26-24.

"At the end of close sets it is a battle, and CUNE was able to make adjustments and execute when they needed to most," Coach Aasen said when asked about closing out tough sets. 

The Comets could have easily folded in set three after two tough losses but displayed their fighting spirit by continuing to battle the highly ranked Bulldogs. Neither team held a lead of more than two points, and a Calyn Crockett kill evened the score at 21. Unfortunately for the Comets, Concordia scored the last four points to win 25-21.

When asked about competing against top competition Coach Aasen said, "It's great that we competed with a top team, but we have a "never satisfied" mentality. Especially when games are that close. It is a good test to see areas that we need to improve but it also proves that we have what it takes to be great, now it's just time to close the gaps."  

Elora Passa continued her torrid start to the season, recording 15 kills, 13 assists and 8 digs. Samantha Passa and Thyra Peterick each notched 6 kills, Peyton Richter paced the team in assists with 17, and Natalie Hadrava added 13 digs.

Going into tomorrows game Aasen said, "We need to play our game, have cleaner offense, have solid defense both on block and back row, and to continue to enhance our aggressive and purposeful serving. We get two more opportunities tomorrow to get better and to fill the gaps from today." 

The split gives the Comets a 3-1 record. Mayville State is back in action tomorrow as Day 2 of the tournament starts at 9:00am against Governors State, then will finish the tournament tomorrow facing Saint Francis (Ind.) at 3:00pm.

Visit https://msucomets.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule  for live video and live stats to tomorrows games!