Despite being outkilled 66-43 and outhit .259-.165, St. Cloud State Volleyball (12-9, 8-7) pushed two-time defending National Champion #3 Concordia-St. Paul (20-4, 14-1) to a hotly competitive 4 sets, ultimately falling 15-25, 25-21, 17-25, and 23-25.

The Huskies struggled in putting up one of their worst sets of the season to open the road match, allowing CSP to go 17-1-29 (.571) while terminating just 9 kills of their own. SCSU settled in and gutted out many tough rally wins, but simply could not match the Golden Bear’s offensive firepower.

Rachel Houle led the Huskies with a double-double, killing 10 balls while racking up 13 digs and a career-high 5 blocks to go with 2 aces. Abby Templin added 10 kills, while Micah Nier put up 8 kills and 4 blocks on .259 hitting.

Sara Macek was utterly unstoppable in the middle for the Golden Bears, finishing with a match-high 20 kills on .400 hitting. Hope Schiller terminated 16 swings and dominated defensively, recording a double-double with 22 digs. Sydney Book (13) and Brooklyn Lewis (10) each finished with double-digit kills. Elizabeth Mohr had a monster night leading Concordia’s offense, finishing with 62 assists.

The Huskies continue their road stretch with a pivotal 2:00 p.m. Saturday match at Minnesota State-Mankato, as SCSU is deadlocked at 8-7 with the Mavericks and Upper Iowa. Husky Den Pregame on the KVSC Sports Stream begins at 1:45 p.m.