Fans lit up St. Thomas volleyball’s first Division I home opener as junior middle blocker Selena Levendoski dominated with 22 kills taking down the University of North Dakota in five sets Thursday night at Schoenecker Arena.
North Dakota (1-15, 0-4 Summit) couldn’t hold back the aggressive Tommies (2-11, 1-2 Summit) who racked up 68 kills ending the game with a score of 25-22, 24-26, 25-23, 19-25 and 15-7.
“I really liked our fight,” coach Thanh Pham said. “We never gave up. It took everybody, not just the starters, but all our kids were engaged with what was happening.”
The Tommies battled in a high-scoring game coming back from a second-set loss to a 9-1 lead in the third set. First-year outside hitter Lauren Galvin contributed 20 kills, not letting the Fighting Hawks take back-to-back sets.
“Every point mattered and even if we were going down a set we were going to fight for every single point and that’s how you win games,” Galvin said.
After losing the fourth set by a high margin, senior setter Grace Anetipa credits the support from the fans and coaches who believed they could finish with a win.
“I was excited for the fifth set,” Anetipa said. “The fans and our coach really helped us with those big rallies and gave us momentum. There was so much energy.”
Anetipa controlled the Tommies’ side of the court totaling 61 assists and 17 digs leading to high errors from North Dakota.
After an attack error by Fighting Hawks senior middle hitter Lexi Ahrens, fans stormed the court in the fifth set to celebrate the Tommies’ first home victory as a Division I program.
“Having fans coming off the bleachers almost on the corner and officials having to stop the game and push them back was so fun,” Galvin said. “Just to have people we know want it for us was amazing.”
St. Thomas ended its nine-game losing streak since an early win against the University of the Incarnate Word on Sept. 3. Anetipa could sense the team “really wanted it” and it led to a favorable outcome.
“We just played Tommie volleyball and we are starting to see all of the hard work and it paid off.”
The Tommies will face North Dakota State University for another home game Saturday at 3 p.m.
“It’s a quick turn, boom we play again,” Pham said. “Hopefully, the crowd can show up again.”
Olivia Paradise can be reached at para4336@stthomas.edu.