Storm edge Falcons, take No. 7 Bears to five sets

ST. LOUIS, Mo. – The Simpson College women's volleyball team split a pair of tight matches on Saturday, posting a four-set win over Concordia Wisconsin before nearly stunning No. 7 Washington in five sets.

The Storm (11-3) opened the day with a four-set comeback win over Concordia Wisconsin (3-9), with every set decided by just two points. Later, Simpson pushed nationally ranked WashU (10-1) to the brink in a five-set classic. After falling in the first set, the Storm rallied to take the second and third, including a huge comeback in set three from 18-13 down. WashU eventually forced a fifth, which saw the Bears escape 17-15.

Morgan DenBeste came away with two more triple doubles, giving her four in her last four outings. She led the Storm with 30 kills on the day, followed closing behind by Jada Schmidt with 29. Peyton Mitchell and Lucia Gomez de Luis added 19 and 16, respectively.

Defensively, Mitchell registered 15 total blocks on the day, while three others got their hands on seven. Hannah Jansen amassed 52 digs to average nearly six per set.

GAME ONE SUMMARY

• Simpson got off to a strong start in the first set, doubling up the Falcons 10-5, but CUW answered with a 7-0 run to knot the game at 15-15. The Storm battled back, taking a 26-25 lead late, only to see the Falcons rally again and steal the set 28-26. Peyton Mitchell led the way early, recording five of her nine kills in the frame and hitting an error-free .714 in seven swings.
• In the second set, Simpson trailed 20-17 before igniting a 7-1 run to seize control. Lucia Gomez de Luis contributed three big kills, while Morgan DenBeste added two, setting up set point. The Storm closed out the set 25-23 to even the match.
• Set three saw another tight battle. Simpson held a 23-20 lead, but the Falcons stormed back with four consecutive points to go up 24-23. DenBeste answered with a clutch kill to tie it 24-24, and Simpson eventually took the set 27-25. Jada Schmidt was dominant, posting eight of her 15 kills in the frame with just one error in 14 swings.
• The Storm jumped out to a 9-2 lead in the fourth set behind a 9-0 run, but CUW refused to go quietly, rallying to take a 19-15 advantage. Simpson responded with a timely block from DenBeste and Caroline Kinkeade to spark a 6-1 run and once again closed out the set, winning 26-24 and taking the match.

GAME ONE LEADERS

• Jada Schmidt: 15 kills, 6 blocks, 5 digs
• Lucia Gomez de Luis: 12 kills, 2 blocks
• Morgan DenBeste: 14 kills, 19 assists, 10 digs, 2 blocks
• Peyton Mitchell: 9 kills, 7 blocks
• Hannah Jansen: 30 digs, 5 assists
• Lauren Dockendorff: 26 assists, 7 digs, 2 kills

GAME TWO SUMMARY

• The Bears jumped out early in the first set, using a 5-0 run to separate themselves and take a 25-18 opening set. Simpson bounced back in the second, fueled by three early blocks from Peyton Mitchell and a total of eight blocks in the set. Morgan DenBeste was unstoppable, posting six kills in 10 swings without an error, helping the Storm take the set 25-19.
• Set three was a thriller, as Simpson overcame a massive deficit to steal the frame 25-23. WashU led 10-4 early and extended the advantage to 18-13, but Simpson rallied behind seven kills between Mitchell and Jada Schmidt to turn the tide and take a 2-1 match lead.
• Neither team led by more than two in the fourth until WashU strung together a 4-0 run to go up 19-14. That run proved decisive, as the Bears closed the set 25-20 to force a fifth. Both offenses were firing in the fifth, with Simpson hitting .407 and WashU hitting .571.
• The final set was back-and-forth throughout. Jada Schmidt delivered an ace to give Simpson an 11-9 lead, the first advantage greater than one all set. WashU answered with five of the next six points to set up match point at 14-12, but Simpson rallied again, taking a 15-14 lead on a Tommie Roberts ace. The Storm's fight nearly carried them to victory, but WashU scored the final three points to survive 17-15.

GAME TWO LEADERS

• Morgan DenBeste: 16 kills, 23 assists, 11 digs
• Jada Schmidt: 14 kills, 4 digs
• Peyton Mitchell: 10 kills, 8 blocks
• Hannah Jansen: 22 digs, 4 assists
• Tommie Roberts: 10 digs, 3 aces
• Lauren Dockendorff: 23 assists, 10 digs
• Emily Williams: 6 kills, 6 blocks, 3 digs

UP NEXT
Simpson begins American Rivers Conference play at Buena Vista on Wednesday night at 6 p.m.