Tommies' quick lead too much for Piper volleyball

The Tommies mounted an 11-2 lead at the start of the opening game, and held off a comeback from the Pipers that found their lead narrowed to two points at 23-21. They then pulled away to take the game, 30-22, on a kill from junior DeJurnett Prioleau (St. Paul, Minn.). Prioleau had 12 kills in the game for the Tommies, as did junior Katie McCaffrey (Fort Collins, Colo.). Senior Kristin Storrs (Blaine, Minn.) led the team with 15 kills.

Hamline and St. Thomas shared the lead, and tied several times, before the Pipers broke away for a 23-15 lead. The Tommie battled back, capitalizing on errors and kills by Prioleau to ultimately take the game 30-26. What was ultimately the final game played out in similar fashion at the beginning, but the Tommies took the lead after a 17-17 tie and never relinquished it.

Junior Amanda Booth (Champlin, Minn.) and sophomore Tasha Simmons (Eagan, Minn.) led the Pipers with 12 digs apiece. Simmons also had 15 digs on the defensive side, while first-year Heidi Larsen (Andover, Minn.) added 14 and her classmate Molly Schroeder (Buffalo, Minn.) had 13.

St. Thomas improved to 22-4 (9-0 MIAC), while Hamline dropped to 15-10 (4-5 MIAC).

Hamline University belongs to the NCAA Division III Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, one of the most competitive conferences in the nation. Hamline supports 19 intercollegiate athletic teams for men and women. Find out more about Hamline athletics at www.hamline.edu/hamline_info/athletics.

Creative and innovative teaching and learning attract a diverse student body of nearly 4,600 undergraduate and graduate students to Hamline University. Challenged to create and apply knowledge in local and global contexts, Hamline students develop an individual and community ethic of social justice, civic responsibility, and inclusive leadership and service.

Ranked first in Minnesota among comprehensive master’s universities by U.S.News & World Report, Hamline is also Minnesota’s first university, founded in 1854, and among the first co-educational institutions in the nation.