Waldorf University – Volleyball Tops Martin Luther, 3-0

Annie Stotlar helped Waldorf to its 7th win

Martin Luther College

Waldorf

FOREST CITY, IOWA – The Waldorf University volleyball team hung on to win a tight third set and complete a sweep of Martin Luther College in straight sets (25-17, 25-20, 28-26) in non-conference action on Denny Jerome Court at Hanson Fieldhouse Saturday. 

The Warriors (7-5) claimed a nailbiting victory in the third set, 28-26, despite trailing by margins as large as four points (16-12).  Martin Luther was on the cusp of extending the contest, but was unable to close out a win after having the opportunity when leading 24-23.  With the set on the line, sophomore outside hitter Alisha Schaefer (Mount Calvary, WI/New Holstein HS) registered a clutch kill to even the score.  When tied at 26, freshman right side hitter Zoee Pond (Monroe, WI/Monroe HS) took over the contest, registering a kill and then a service ace to secure the Warrior victory.

In the opening set, the Warriors allowed the first point, but would not trail again, winning 25-17 and leading by margins as large as eight.  With the score standing at 22-17, sophomore defensive setter Trinity Perez (Worthing, SD/Roosevelt HS) registered three consecutive service aces to give the Warriors a 1-0 advantage. 

In the second set, the Warriors were able to stave off rally threats from the Knights (1-8) to win 25-20.  Sophomore outside hitter Kenzie Kidd (Roscoe, IL/Hononegah HS) ended the set with one of her game-high ten kills.  Freshman outside hitter Annie Stotlar tallied seven kills on 11 total attacks, while junior middle blocker Abygail Wood (Ankeny, IA/Ankeny Centennial HS) contributed nine kills. 

With the victory, the Warriors have won four of their last six matches.  This season marks the first time in the past 15 seasons that a Waldorf team registered wins in at least seven of its first 12 matches.  The 7-5 start to the 2021 campaign is the best record through 12 games since the 2007 and 2008 Warrior squads each began 6-6.

When asked, Head Coach Bri Ebenhoe said “It is always great to get a win at home.  We saw improvement in areas that we focused on this week, but we were not particularly sharp in our serve game.  Our team is ready to continue working hard as we get ready for our conference matches next weekend.”

The Warriors return to action on Friday, Sept. 24 when they face Valley City State University for a North Star Athletic Association conference tilt. …