SAINT JOSEPH, Minn. — The No. 16 Gusties, on a quick turn-around from their 3-1 victory over Concordia, defeated Saint Benedict in the battle of the top-two MIAC teams with a clean 3-0 sweep. With the victory, the Gusties clinched sole possession of the MIAC regular season title and the No. 1 seed in MIAC Playoffs.
Set one started and ended in favor of the Gusties, as an early 8-2 lead was too much for the Bennies to recover from. The Gusties would build that lead to as many as 10 points, 23-13, before delivering Saint Benedict a 25-15 defeat in set one. The Gusties continued to dominate in set two, posting 20 of the set’s first 29 points, before delivering a 25-13 blow to the Bennies.
The Bennies, determined to prove their standing in set three, battled the Gusties to a stalemate 17 times throughout the set. Neither team was able to take more than a three point lead, but kills from Lauren Klaith (Jr., Rockford) and Sarah Elliott (Sr., Lombard, Ill.) sealed the sweep for the Gusties at 25-22.
All three Gustie kill-leaders from the night before returned in impressive fashion, with Elliott, Marlee Turn (Jr., Kennedy), and Klaith, all posting more than 10 kills for the second night in a row. Elliott paced the Gusties with 14, while Turn added 13 and Klaith chipped in 10. Kasie Tweet (Jr., Adrian) added 34 of 44 helpers and a team-leading 15 digs for her 13th double-double of the season, while Maren Sundberg (Fy., Eagan) posted 13 digs and Turn added 11.
The Gusties are back in action in Duluth on Friday, facing St. Scholastica for their final road match of the season.