The William Jewell College Volleyball team finished off the weekend at the Sioux Falls Invitational with a split of two matches on Saturday. The Cardinals took the opener 3-1 over Bemidji State by scores of 25-20, 26-24, 25-20, 25-23 before falling to Minnesota Crookston 3-0, 25-18, 25-21, 25-17.

A high powered and balanced offense helped pave the way to the win in the opening match of the day as Jewell was led by three players with double-digit kills. Paige Cunningham posted 13, Madeline Johnson 11, and Stefanie Richterkessing with 10, while Grace Miller was close behind with nine.

Despite the big offensive numbers for Jewell all four sets were back-and-forth affairs as neither team built a lead larger than seven.

The Cardinals also collected 11 service aces and held Bemidji State to a .150 overall attack percentage, including holding the Beavers under .100 in sets three and four. Bemidji entered the game hitting an impressive .245 as a team.

In defense of the net, Jewell collected 12 blocks, with Miller leading the way with seven while Johnson had six and Jenna Rau five. Along the back row Olivia Tolberd led the team with 19 digs while Richterkessing posted 15 to grab her third double-double of the season. Freshman Lauren Johnson also added 11 digs.

Senior Amy Lindhorst led the team with 20 assists while Alix Weigel added 19 to go along with four service aces.

In the nightcap, Minnesota Crookston did what they've done to opposing offseasons all season, as they shut down the Cardinals, allowing them to hit just .072.

In set one Jewell climbed out of a large hole but couldn't overcome the early deficit and fell 25-18. In each of the final two sets, the Cardinals built a lead but late errors proved costly as they fell 25-21 and 25-17.

Cunningham again led the team with eight kills while Miller added four blocks. Tolberd posted 17 digs and Weigel 15 assists.

Jewell finishes tournament play with an overall record of 4-4 which is the best start since the 2011 season. The Cardinals are set to open Great Lakes Valley Conference play next weekend as they travel Southern Indiana for a 7:00 p.m. match Friday, followed by two matches on Saturday as they will take on Bellarmine at 1:30 p.m. and non-conference opponent Trevecca Nazarene at 4:00 p.m.