10/12/07

St. Scholastica (12-13, 6-2 UMAC) fought back from the brink of defeat, twice, to capture a 3-2 win over visiting Martin Luther College (1-17, 1-6 UMAC) on Friday night in the Reif Gymnasium.

After winning the first game, 30-23, the Saints fell behind 2-1 in the match as Martin Luther took games two and three, 31-29 and 30-28.

Down early in the fourth game, the Saints pulled ahead late and evened the match with a 30-23 win setting up a game five showdown.

The Knights jumped out to an 8-4 lead, then an 11-7 lead on the Saints before head coach Dana Moore called a timeout to try and regroup a team on the brink of defeat.

Whatever was said on the sideline seemed to work as the Saints scored the next seven points before Martin Luther could stop the run with a point of their own. By then, though, the tide was still flowing downhill for the Saints and Shawna Varichak buried an attack for a 15-12 win to send the Saints and a crowd of 237 fans into celebration.

Varichak led St. Scholastica in kills with a match-high 23 while Amy Thompson chipped in with 17 more for the winning Saints. Megan Baartman and Kati Berscheit split the setters duties on the night and totaled 25 and 24, respectively, set assists.

Defensively for the Saints, Diana Moody came up with a match-high 30 digs while Cassie Roden added another 18.

With the win, the Saints remain tied for second place within the UMAC rankings, sharing the spot with Bethany Lutheran College, a 3-2 winner over Northland College on Friday night, and the Saints’ next opponent at the Reif at 1 p.m. Saturday afternoon.