CSB downs UW-Eau Claire, advances to regional semifinal

There’s a big reason why the College of Saint Benedict volleyball team has advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division III tournament.

Strong net play.

The Bennies opened tournament play with a 25-27, 25-13, 25-23, 25-22 win over the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Nov. 14 at the University of St. Thomas' Schoenecker Arena, St. Paul.

The victory advances the No. 3 seeded Bennies (24-5 overall) into the semifinals of the eight-team regional tournament. They'll face No. 7-seeded Northwestern (Minnesota) at 4:30 p.m. Friday. Nov. 15, at St. Thomas.

CSB defeated Northwestern twice (Sept. 7 and Sept. 14). However, Northwestern (25-8 overall) upset No. 2-seeded St. Olaf Thursday in a quarterfinal match.

The winner of the semifinal match will advance to the championship at 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 16, at St. Thomas.

This year’s edition of the Bennies are led by a strong presence at the net.

When CSB is on the attack, the Bennies rank sixth in Division III with 13.94 kills per set and ninth with a .255 hitting percentage. Those figures both lead the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

Defensively, CSB is sixth in Division III with 2.33 blocks per set, and 19th with 223 total blocks. Both figures rank second in the MIAC.

Individually, sisters Madison (.439) and Hunter (.409) Weiss have the top attack percentages in program history, dating back to the 1994 season. Madison Weiss, a junior middle blocker, is on pace to set a school record for hitting percentage in a season.

Hunter Weiss, a junior right-side hitter, became the 14th CSB athlete to reach 1,000 career kills in October. She is currently 12th in program history with 1,105 kills, while her sister has 915 total kills, and was named the MIAC Player of The Year for 2019.

As a team, CSB has hit .300 or better in 10 of its 28 matches. That occurred just eight times in 2018 and five times in 2017. Plus, the Bennies have had double-digit blocks nine times.

Of course, you need a good setter to set up the hitters up front, and the Bennies have that in junior Katie Koch. She ranks sixth in Division III with 10.9 assists per set and surpassed the 2,000-assist milestone earlier this fall (she has 2,399 assists heading into nationals).

Coach Nicole Hess is also an old hand at taking the Bennies to the national tournament, with eight appearances in her 10 seasons at CSB.

Last season, the Bennies went 2-1 in the national tournament and made their first appearance in the Sweet 16 since 2012. Coincidentally, it was the Blugolds who knocked the Bennies out of the tournament last season with a four-set win.

Overall, CSB leads the series with the Blugolds, 12-9, with the two teams meeting twice previously in the national tournament (CSB won the 2008 matchup).