9/6: Eau Claire scores two key wins

No reason to panic this early in the season, but after struggling on its home court over the weekend UW-Eau Claire more than many teams needed two quality wins tonight. Mission accomplished.

No. 20 UW-Eau Claire 3, Bethel 0. The Blugolds hit a robust .416 overall and had 20 kills in the first set. Senior middle Laura Slinger (12-0-19) led the way.

No. 20 UW-Eau Claire 3, St. Scholastica 1. UWEC (3-3) wins Round 1 over the Saints. Round 2 is Friday. UWEC had 20 more kills than CSS (6-2) and outhit the Saints .260 to .134. UWEC hit over .400 in the last two sets. CSS falls to 2-2 against teams receiving votes in the AVCA poll. Not a bad loss considering it’s the Saints’ eighth match in the season’s first six days, but it’s one I thought they could have won. Three Blugolds had 11+ kills. No Saint reached double figures in kills. CSS swept Bethel earlier tonight.

Augsburg 3, UW-River Falls 1. The Auggies’ (4-1) impressive start continues. The teams combined for 53 attack errors and 15 aces. UWRF (2-3) hit negative in two sets. AC hit negative in one. The WIAC as a whole has stumbled out of the gate.

-Ricky Nelson