Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 All coaches of collegiate programs are faced with a decision each year whether to face an easy opponent in week one or to challenge their team to play the best programs in the country in their sport, which ultimately provides a barometer of where their program is against the best in the nation.
 
The Wheeling Jesuit University Volleyball program over the past three years has done the latter.  This past weekend the Lady Cardinals travelled to Concordia University, St. Paul in Minnesota to play some of the best volleyball programs in the nation at the 2014 Radisson Hotel Roseville Volleyball Clash. 
 
Friday's first match of the tournament pitted Wheeling Jesuit against the Missouri S&T Miners.  The Cardinals were victorious in five sets, 24-26, 25-23, 24-26, 25-17, and 15-13. 
 
The second match on Friday was against #7 Southwest Minnesota State.  Once again it was a tightly contested battle, but in the end WJU won in five sets with scores of 17-25, 25-18, 11-25, 26-24 and 15-7.
 
Saturday's first match for the Cardinals was against the #1 Concordia St. Paul Golden Bears.  In the first set, Wheeling Jesuit led by as much as three points at 15-12, but could not hold onto the lead.  Concordia scored the final five points to claim the first set 25-17.
 
The second set witnessed Wheeling Jesuit lead by an even bigger margin at 16-11 and remained tied until the 23-point mark of the match.  But, two kills from St. Concordia gave the Golden Bears the set 25-23. 
 
Wheeling Jesuit fought hard in the third set to lead 16-15, but a 5-point streak gave the Golden Bears the edge they needed to stall a WJU comeback and win the third set 25-19. 
 
Wheeling Jesuit had a chance in all three sets against Concordia St. Paul, marking a turning point for the program.  Andrea Thobe had 25 assists and 6 digs, while Makenzie Ripley was strong once again in the backcourt with 20 digs.
 
With the loss to Concordia, the Cardinals moved to 2-1 on the season as they prepared for the final match of the tournament against the Ashland University Eagles. 
 
WJU executed Head Coach Christy Benner's plan going into the game.  The Cardinals were dominant in the first set as Ashland posted only five kills and had a -.111 hitting percentage.  Wheeling Jesuit took the first set 25-11.  In the next two sets, the Cardinals played solid defense and continued to feature a very good serve receive.  The Cardinals swept  Ashland in three straight sets taking the second set 25-17 and the third set 25-16.
 
Haley Kindall posted 14 kills and 5 blocks, Kayce Krucki added 10 kills and 3 blocks, and Jessica Thobe finished with 10 kills and 3 service aces.  Andrea Thobe set up all of her teammates and was rewarded with 40 assists.  On defense, Jessica Thobe led the team with 13 digs, while Makenzie Ripley added eight digs, and the trio of Andrea Thobe, Kayce Krucki, and Samantha Obringer added six digs apiece.
 
Coming out of this tournament with a win against the #7 team in the country, winning two contiguous state regional victories over Missouri S&T and Ashland University, playing the #1 team in the country tough for three straight matches, and finishing the first four games of the season in a hostile environment 3-1 all spell one thing.  The Cardinals continue to impress on the national stage and we are in for some good volleyball at the McDonough Center for the season to come.
 
Wheeling Jesuit Volleyball returns to action on Wednesday September 10^th, 2014 at 6:00 p.m. at the McDonough Center in their home opener against another regional opponent, the University of Indianapolis Greyhounds.