NEW ULM, Minn. - The Martin Luther College volleyball team opened the second half of the UMAC schedule with a 3-2 loss to St. Scholastica on Saturday by the scores of 30-28, 23-25, 25-22, 19-25 and 15-10.

The teams battled back and forth in each of the first three sets, and the Saints finished on top in the first and third to take a 2-1 lead in the match.

The Knights fought back to build a big early lead in the fourth set and forced a fifth and deciding set, but were unable to slow down the CSS attack late as the Saints pulled out the win.

The match was even statistically, with both teams finished with 66 total kills. MLC recorded an attack efficiency of .231 for the match, while the Saints hit .230.

MLC was effective on the block throughout the match and finished with 15 total blocks. Ruth Buchholz led the team with eight, while Moriah Hackbarth and Rylee Weisensel added seven and six, respectively. 

Kira Grev and Jade St. Germaine led the team with 16 kills apiece, while Taylor Webber recorded 20 digs. 

MLC fell to 11-9 on the season and 6-3 in UMAC play in defeat, while CSS improved to 7-19 overall and 5-4 in conference with the win.

The Knights will return to action on Tuesday, October 3, when they travel to North Central for a match scheduled to start at 7 p.m.