GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – After a bit of a slow start, Cornerstone responded with three straight set victories to defeat St. Thomas and advance to the final site of the NAIA National Tournament in Sioux City, Iowa. CU advances to Iowa for the first time since 2017 and has now won 33 consecutive matches. Matchups and game times will be announced later as final site action begins after Thanksgiving on November 30. 

Game Recap: #20 Cornerstone – 3 #RV St. Thomas – 1 (22-25, 25-16, 25-18, 25-19)
 
Set One:

• Both teams battled some nerves early, as the two teams combined for nine errors in the first 14 points. 
• St. Thomas would take advantage of the errors for their first run of the set to go on top 10-7 with three straight points. 
• A Bobcat kill from Tayla Barnes put them on top 19-12.
• After an Aubrey Lenz service ace, St. Thomas recorded four errors consecutively to get CU back in the set, trailing 21-18. 
• Alexandra MacAskill recorded the final kill to take set one 25-22. 

 
Set Two:

• A Rylie Walters service ace helped Cornerstone get back in rhythm as they took an early 5-1 lead. 
• Amanda Allende started a St. Thomas 3-0 run that got them back in set, 9-7.
• Aubrey Lenz dominated at the service line, recording three consecutive service aces to spark a 5-0 run and go up 19-12. 
• The dominance continued as CU won five of the last six points with a Kaylee Dykema kill in the mix to take set two by their largest margin, 25-16. 

 
Set Three:

• Regan Vaughn kept the momentum going in set three, starting CU on a 4-0 run that saw an ace and an Aubrey Lenz dump kill. 
• The offense started to get rolling for CU as Rylie Walters and Kaylee Dykema recorded kills to increase the lead to 7-2. 
• Cornerstone had a 6-0 run later in the set on the Aubrey Lenz serve. The block was a huge factor in the run as Kylie Barron combined with Kathryn Detweiler once and Olivia Keelean once to spur the run. STU called timeout in the middle of the run but had no answer as they fell behind 15-4. 
• STU later had a 4-0 run to get back within six, as Hope Leavy-Gaskins took her turn at three consecutive service aces. 
• Kaylee Dykema would seal set three with a kill though at 25-18. 

 
Set Four:

• The Bobcat errors again allowed Cornerstone to go out early and gain a 6-2 advantage in set four. 
• The lead remained four on a huge block from Kaylee Dykema and Rylie Walters, 11-7. 
• Finally, St. Thomas began to find their offense again with a 5-0 run to take the lead 12-11. 
• CU regained the lead 15-14 on a Hope Leavy-Gaskins attack error. 
• A kill from Kathryn Detweiler and a bad set from the Bobcats allowed CU to increase their edge to an 18-15 advantage. 
• Amanda Allende and the Bobcats refused to quit cutting the deficit back to just one, 20-19. Cornerstone scored the final five points of the set though to secure the match on a Kaylee Dykema kill and advance to the NAIA National Tournament final site for the first time since 2017. 

By the Numbers:
39-19 – St. Thomas had 20 more attack errors than the Golden Eagles with 39, while CU had just 19. 
5 – Aubrey Lenz recorded a match high five service aces for the third time this season. 
29/5 – Patsy Morris led the defense with 29 digs, while Rylie Walters and Kylie Barron combined for a team high five blocks. 
 
What's Next?
Cornerstone will now head to Sioux City, Iowa as NAIA final site action will begin on November 30. Opponents and game times will be announced at a later date. 
 
Volleyball Contact: Jesse Campbell 
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