Winona, Minn. - The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse volleyball team went 2-0 at the St. Mary's University (Minn.) Triangular Tuesday evening . The Eagles defeated St. Mary's University (Minn.) in the first match while coming from behind to beat Luther College (Iowa) in the second match.

THE BASICS 
Final Score:  UW-La Crosse defeated St. Mary's University (Minn.) 18-25, 25-14, 19-25, 25-16, 15-10, UW-La Crosse defeated Luther College (Iowa) 22-25, 18-25, 25-21, 25-16, 15-8
Location: St. Mary's Gymnasium, Winona, Minn.
Records: UWL 7-3, St. Mary's University (Minn.) 6-3, Luther College (Iowa) 2-7

UW-LA CROSSE 3, ST. MARY'S UNIVERSITY (MINN.) 2

• WIth the score tied at 13 in the first set, SMU went on a 9-2 run to take a 22-15 lead. UWL would not get any closer than five (23-18) the rest of the set. 
• It was all UWL in the second set as the Eagles opened the game on a 12-3 run. Two kills apiece from Gabrialla Johnson, Reese Yocum, and Kaity Coisman sparked the fast start. UWL took its largest lead of the second set at 24-11. The second set saw the Eagles hit .393 as a team (14 kills, 3 errors). 
• UWL jumped out to a 9-3 lead in the third set before SMU stormed back scoring 13 of the next 15 points to lead 16-11. 
• The Eagles used a 7-0 run to take control of the fourth set and lead 16-9. SMU would not get any closer than eight (19-11) the rest of the way.
• The two teams traded points early in the fifth set before UWL took control to lead 13-8. Three kills by Brianne Korducki and two by Coisman helped the Eagles create some separation in the fifth set. 

UW-LA CROSSE 3, LUTHER COLLEGE 2

• Luther (Iowa) took control early in the second match as they won both of the first two sets. UWL hit a combined .092 over the first two sets while Luther (Iowa) hit .291.
• After Luther took an early 5-1 lead in the third set, the Eagles went on a 6-0 run to take the lead at 7-5. Trailing 13-9, the Eagles went on a 9-0 to lead 18-13. Luther cut their deficit to 20-19 before UWL scored five of the final seven points.
• In the fourth set, the UWL defense held SMU to just six kills and forced seven hitting errors. Trailing 6-3, the Eagles went on a 10-3 run to lead 13-9; a lead they would not give back. 
• The Eagles would find themselves in a 6-3 deficit in the decisive fifth set but as they did all day, UWL found a way to come out on top. UWL closed the fifth set on a 12-2 run capped by back-to-back service aces from Ella Luoma for points 14 and 15. 

FROM THE BOXSCORE

• Korducki recorded back-to-back 20+ kill performances with 22 kills against SMU and 23 kills in win over Luther College (Iowa). Korducki also had a career high 21 digs in win over Luther College. 
• Luoma recorded a career high 24 digs in match against St. Mary's.
• Youcum recorded 10 kills versus St Mary's (Minn.) while Johnson finished wth 16 kills, 10 digs in match versus Luther College
• Ciarra McNally led the Cardinals with 17 kills while Lindesy Rossow finished with 18 digs. 
• Sarina Stortz led the Norse of Luther College with 13 kills while Julianne Lundavall finished with 10 kills and 10 digs. 

FROM THE VOICE OF THE EAGLES

• Head Coach Deb Sazama on the wins over St. Mary's (Minn.) and Luther (Iowa) here

UP NEXT

• UWL will host the 2023 home opener on Friday, September 15 when they play in the UW-La Crosse Invitational. UWL opens with Macalester College (Minn.) at 3:00 p.m. and then plays Simpson College (Iowa) at 7:00 p.m.