DULUTH, Minn. - The Carleton volleyball team lost a pair of matches at the St. Scholastica Triangular on Saturday. The matches were exciting displays, stretching to five sets each, but the Knights ultimately fell 3-2 in each contest. 
 
Match 1 - Carleton 2, St. Scholastica 3
 
In the first match of the day, Carleton dropped a heartbreaker to St. Scholastica in five sets to open up conference play. The Knights came out strong, winning the first two sets of the match. However, St. Scholastica returned with intensity, taking two sets of their own. Carleton couldn't come back in the final set, and fell 3-2. 
 
The first set saw back and forth scoring from each team, though Carleton had a slight edge, maintaining a lead throughout. It remained close until Sylvia Dixon (Fy./Vienna, Va./James Madison) gave the Knights a 23-20 lead with a kill, prompting St. Scholastica to take a timeout. The Knights hung on after that, and were able to take the win 25-21. 
 
The Knights fell behind 4-1 to start the second set, and chased from behind early on. A pair of key kills followed by a service ace from Dixon tied it up at 6-6. The momentum continued as Carleton went ahead 9-6 as the momentum began to swing in favor of the Blue and Gold. But St. Scholastica wouldn't make it easy. After trading points, two service aces by the Saints left the game tied again (14-14). Carleton held onto a lead, finding itself ahead 22-20 nearing the end of the set. A long volley won by St. Scholastica gave the opposition some hope, but the Knights finished off strong. A block from Jancyn Appel (Sr./Kansas City, Mo./The Pembroke Hill School) gave them a 24-21 advantage and though St. Scholastica rallied, a final kill by Appel won the set 25-23. 
 
Momentum started to shift in the third set, as St. Scholastica got off to a 7-5 lead early. The Knights battled but never managed to find a significant lead, and took a timeout with St. Scholastica leading 23-19, looking to put the match away. St. Scholastica capitalized on the advantage and walked away with the set, 25-19. 
 
This sent the teams into a fourth set where Carleton came out strong earning a 5-2 lead. But St. Scholastica's momentum continued as the teams went back and forth until it was tied at 14 apiece. After bringing the score to a tie, St. Scholastica went on a run the Saints to a 21-15 lead. Carleton couldn't recover, and the match was sent to a fifth and final set. 
 
Carleton fell behind to start the fifth set, trailing 9-4 in the early going. They battled back to make it 9-7 with several great kills and a block from Catie Marvin (Jr./Wilmington, Del./The Tatnall School) and Annelise Sokolow (Jr./Draper, Utah/Juan Diego Catholic). However, some impressive kills from St. Scholastica put Carleton in an uphill battle, and they fell 15-10, losing the match 3-2. 
 
Kerrigan Candra (So./Joliet, Ill./Plainfield Central) led the way for the Knights with double figures in both kills (14) and digs (12).  Sokolow followed with her own double-double, thanks to 14 kills and 11 digs.  Jancyn Appel followed as the third Carleton player with 12 kills to go along with a team-high five blocks.  First-year Isabel Macia (Fy./Coral Gables, Fy./Divine Savior Academy) notched a career-high 45 assists.  Kailey Smith (Sr./Racine, Wis./Dunlap) collected a team-high 13 digs.
 
Match 2 - Carleton 2, University of Wisconsin Superior 3
 
In the second match of the day, Carleton took on the University of Wisconsin-Superior Yellowjackets. The Knights found themselves tied up at two after four sets once again, but lost in the fifth and final set after another tough battle. 
 
The first set opened up with a fast pace. Skillful plays on both sides kept the score close throughout the entire set. The teams found themselves tied at 10, then at 16 apiece. A few quick kills gave Carleton a 20-18 lead, but both teams continued to battle, and the score was yet again tied at 24 late in the set. Both teams held on, but an ace by UW-Superior gave them the win 27-25. 
 
Carleton started to pick up momentum in the second set. After some back-and-forth play, errors on the other side of the net along with several good kills by the Knights including Sokolow and Marvin, they propelled themselves to a 20-13 lead. Ahead 24-18, a final kill by Kerrigan Candra won Carleton the set 25-18. 
 
A similar story continued in the third set, where Carleton picked up a lead of 6-3 early, pressing on and finding themselves up 13-6 following several key kills and two consecutive service aces by Isabel Macia. From there, Wisconsin-Superior couldn't catch up, and Carleton took the set 25-16, putting themselves ahead 2-1 going into the fourth. 
 
The fourth set saw a shift back to the Yellowjackets, as Carleton found themselves battling to stay in it. The match became tied up at 11, but a long run for the Yellowjackets left Carleton trailing 18-11. From there, the Knights couldn't quite catch up, and despite a four-point run towards the end of the set including two kills from Candra, they dropped set four 25-21. 
 
Hopeful to take the match, Carleton came out strong in the final set, jumping out to a 3-1 lead. A pair of kills and a block on the other side of the net shifted the set, however. Carleton fell behind, but remained close with a score of 8-7. A run by the Yellowjackets increased that deficit to 11-7. A timeout for the Knights aimed to slow things down, but another run by UW-Superior left them down 14-8. Carleton couldn't climb back, falling 15-8 and losing the match 3-2.
 
Annelise Sokolow paced the Carleton attack with a team-high 13 kills.  She also collected four aces and three blocks. Kerrigan Candra totaled her third straight double-double with 10 kills and a team-high 15 kills.  Jancyn Appel finished with 10 kills and six blocks, while Isabel Macia racked up 41 assists.
 
Up Next for the Knights
The Carleton volleyball team will return home to host St. Catherine University on Wednesday, September 21st, before heading to Milwaukee for three matches next Saturday at the Milwaukee School of Engineering Invite.