Middle blocker Grace Duffy smiles at a teammate before a play. (TommieMedia/Marissa Groechel)
Rightside hitter Ellie Etzell and middle blocker Grace Duffy press over hoping for a block. Etzell had 69 blocks on the season. (TommieMedia/Marissa Groechel)
Middle blocker Whitney Loyd runs a slide to get through the double block. Loyd had 293 kills on the season. (TommieMedia/Marissa Groechel)
Middle blocker Grace Duffy focuses in as she waits for the serve. Duffy had 153 kills and 105 blocks on the season. (TommieMedia/Marissa Groechel)
Outside hitter Brooke Reichart winds up for a powerful kill. Reichart had 275 kills on the season. (TommieMedia/Marissa Groechel)
The volleyball team comes together for a cheer before the third game. The Tommies finished their season 22 and nine. (TommieMedia/Marissa Groechel)
Libero Ellie Meyer waits for a ball to be served at her in the back row. Ellie Meyer was named MIAC Rookie-of-the-Year with 571 digs on the season. (TommieMedia/Marissa Groechel)
Outside hitter Brooke Reichart and middle blocker Whitney Loyd go up for a double block. Loyd had 117 blocks on the season. (TommieMedia/Marissa Groechel)
Outside hitter Taylor Lewis hits the ball over the net for a kill. Lewis had 221 kills on the season. (TommieMedia/Marissa Groechel)
Tommies embrace each other after a scoring play. The volleyball team fell to UW-La Crosse in three games. (TommieMedia/Marissa Groechel)
The St. Thomas volleyball team’s 2016 season came to an end with a 3-0 loss to Wisconsin-La Crosse Thursday in the opening round of the NCAA tournament at the University of Northwestern-St. Paul.
“I’m extremely proud of my girls,” St. Thomas coach Thanh Pham. “They battled through a lot of adversity, and to be where they are now speaks volumes of their character.”
The Tommies (22-9 overall, 9-2 MIAC) matched 15th-ranked Eagles (23-5 overall, 5-2 WIAC) point-for-point to start the match until La Crosse closed the first set on a 14-7 run, winning it 25-18.
The second set was tightly contested as neither team led by more than four points.
Facing set point 24-22, the Tommies fought off many Eagle attacks. Ellie Meyer and Madie Kroehler each had multiple digs on the play with Whitney Lloyd leading the counterattack for St. Thomas. Unfortunately for the Tommies, La Crosse was able to tip the ball between Meyer and Kroehler to win the point and the set 25-22.
The third set looked like it was going to be over in a hurry as La Crosse jumped out to a 10-1 lead before Pham called a timeout.
Following the timeout, the Tommies responded with a 10-3 run of their own to make it 13-11. Later in the set, St. Thomas was able to tie the score at 21 apiece on a Taylor Lewis block. However, the comeback could not be completed as the Eagles won four of the final six points, securing the set 25-23 and the match 3-0.
“It was unfortunate that we were down 10-1 to one of the top 15 teams in the country but to battle back and almost pull it out, I couldn’t be more proud,” Pham said.
Lewis, who had eight kills for the Tommies against the Eagles, credited the depth of the team with its success.
“After last year, I think people weren’t expecting us to come back as strong as we did this year,” Lewis said. “I’m so proud of everyone for pulling through.”
The Tommies finish 2016 22-9, a large improvement over a 9-17 season in 2015.
“It’s always sad to end a season but our seniors left us with a very solid foundation for our future,” Pham said.
Taylor Smith can be reached at smit9660@stthomas.edu.