NORTHFIELD, Minn. – In front of a raucous crowd at West Gym, the Carleton volleyball team came from behind in the fifth and deciding set to win a thriller over St. Olaf College on Friday night. The win brings "The Bell" (the traveling trophy between the two programs) back to the east side of the river for the first time since 2017, ending a six-year winless streak against the cross-town rival.
"It is surreal to have the Bell back," stated Head Coach Abby Walton. "I know our players are excited. It was an awesome turnout and was great to have our fans, student section, parents, and alumni all here for Homecoming. We couldn't have asked for a better turnout."
The Knights came out on fire to open the match, winning each of the first two sets. After trailing 5-2 early in the first set, a 7-2 run gave Carleton a 9-7 lead. The advantage grew to as many as five points (16-11) before the Oles climbed back within two (17-15). But the Knights slammed the door and finished the set with the final four points to take the opening frame 25-18.
The second set was all St. Olaf to begin. The Oles scored the first five points before the Knights chipped away at the lead. The key point in the second came late in the frame. Trailing 20-18, Carleton strung together six straight points to not only take the lead, but stretch it out to four points (24-20) in what proved to be an insurmountable deficit for the Oles.
With their backs against the wall, the Oles came out to grab control of the third set with an early 6-2 lead. Carleton came back to tie the set 7-7, but a 10-2 run for St. Olaf gave the visitors an eight point lead (17-9), the largest lead by either team to that point in the night. But the Knights had more fight in them. Trailing 19-11, Carleton used a 6-2 run to climb back within four (21-17), but it was too little, too late for the Maize and Blue as the Oles scored four of the final five points in the set to take it 25-18 and cut the deficit to 2-1 in the match.
The fourth set followed a similar script as the visitors built another eight-point lead (15-7). But unlike the previous set, the Knights had the answer and then some. They scored six straight points as a part of an 11-2 run to climb all the way back and take an 18-17 lead in the late stages. Carleton clung to that one-point lead and led 23-22, but with its back to the wall, St. Olaf finished off the set with the final three points to keep its night alive.
It appeared the momentum had fully shifted to the Oles to open the fifth and final set. They grabbed the first three points. The Knights hung around, but the match seemed to be slipping away in the late stages with a 10-7 deficit. Insert
Annika Tuma. The senior came through in the biggest moment of the night, registering a pair of kills and a block to tie the final set.
The Oles then scored three straight points to take a 13-10 lead and all but seal the match. But Tuma came through again. After the Knights scored back-to-back points to pull within one (13-12), Tuma came up with a huge kill and another block to give her team the lead (14-13) and the chase for the elusive match point began.
The two teams traded points, tying the score three times to a 16-16 score. It was time for
Kerrigan Candra to take over. The junior came up with a kill to give the Knights the advantage and called it final with a service ace to finish the match in thrilling fashion.
"The resiliency we showed was the biggest thing for us tonight," said Walton. "That is part of our team motto. I loved seeing our seniors and captains step up to make some big plays for us."
Candra led the way with a double-double for the Knights. The captain put up 14 kills to go along with 13 digs and also added three aces on the night.
Sylvia Dixon was the only other Knight in double-figure kills with 12.
Isabel Macia and
Megan Smith both tallied 20-plus assists with 23 and 20, respectively, while
Annelise Sokolow made the move to libero for the evening and had a team-high 27 digs.
Annika Tuma had three kills and a pair of blocks, all of which came in her team's final 11 points of the night.
Up Next for the Knights
Carleton will be back in action next Friday, when it heads to Saint Paul for a 7:00pm match at Macalester.
