Sam Thiel/Winonan

The Winona State University volleyball team headed into the season with last year’s success in its back pockets and came away with a pair of victories in its first tournament.

Despite falling in the first set, the Warriors bounced back with three consecutive set wins to open the season with a 3-1 victory against Central Washington Friday in St. Paul.

After being named the AVCA Central Region Freshman of the Year last season, Danielle Rampart started her sophomore campaign with 19 kills and a hitting percentage of .419, match highs for both teams.

Rampart wasn’t the lone star for Winona State, with five sophomores netting double-digit kills. Taylor Goar (13), Maria Fruechte (11), Lauren Kudronowicz (10) and McKenna Larsen (10) all reached the mark, with Goar ending just short of recording a double-double with nine digs. Rampart chipped in eight digs while Larsen added seven to balance the offensive attack.

Winona State and Central Washington, who both earned trips to the NCAA Tournament last season, were deadlocked at 10 apiece in the first set before the Warriors began to pull away thanks to a 7-0 run.

The Wildcats responded with a 9-3 run of their own to knot the game at 21 and later at 23. But consecutive errors by Goars gave CWU the first game, 25-23.

The Warriors built a quick 5-2 advantage in game two thanks to an ace by Kudronowicz – one of six by Winona State in the match.

The Wildcats fought back to even the game at 15 all, but the Warriors used a 4-0 run to give themselves a 25-22 victory and knot the match at 1-1.

Winona State claimed a 2-1 advantage in the match in the third set despite hitting only .139. The Warriors used another run, this time winning six of seven points to take a 19-14 lead highlighted by a couple of kills by freshman Maria Wrage en route to a 25-20 victory.

The Warriors used a combination of a .424 hitting percentage and 18 kills to break a 16-16 tie and cap the rally with a 25-19 victory in the fourth and final set.

Larsen netted her first double-double of the season with a match-high 55 assists – tying the second-most in her career – to go along with 10 kills and a hitting percentage of .348.

Jamie Cairncross paced Winona State defensively with 13 digs.

The Warriors then squared off against No. 15 Palm Beach Atlantic Friday night in St. Paul, and after claiming the first two sets, Winona State held on en route to a 3-2 upset in five sets.

The upset win was Winona State’s first over a team ranked 15th or higher since Oct. 2013, when the Warriors defeated No. 15 Wayne State in Winona.

Sophomore McKenna Larsen followed up her double-double performance earlier that afternoon with a triple-double effort. The setter recorded 44 assists, 12 kills and 11 digs while adding a hit percentage of .429 for the match.

“Our defense and passing gave me a chance to do whatever I wanted with any ball I got the chance to set. Hats off to them,” Larsen said.

Winona State used a trio of errors by PBA to its advantage in the first set. Leading 8-5, the Warriors went on an 8-1 run to post a 18-6 advantage. The Sailfish managed to cut the deficit to 18-15 but Taylor Goar served up an ace to put away game one for the 25-18 victory. Winona State’s defense allowed a hitting percentage of just .103 in the first set.

“Our blockers did a great job of setting the block, which allows us to get in good positions on defense,” Cairncross said. “Also, I think we all have a great mentality of going for everything.”

The Warriors increased their match lead in the second set, using a .344 hitting percentage to net a 25-11 win. Winona State used a 12-2 run to put the game out of reach.

The third set saw Winona State ready to sweep the Sailfish with a 19-15 lead, but PBA pieced a 10-2 run of its own to stay alive with a 25-21 victory. Errors hurt the Warriors in the third set, as they recorded 10, compared to 13 in their other four sets combined.

The Sailfish used another late run in the fourth set to come back from 17-15 down to a 25-21 win and force a tie-breaking fifth set.

Winona State would never trail in the final set. Consecutive kills by Fruechte and aces by Goar and Cairncross gave the Warriors a 7-3 lead. Winona State’s final run brought it to the final score of 15-5.

Just as they did a few hours earlier, the Warriors used a balanced attack. Goar led the way with 14 kills, while Rampart recorded 13, McKenna Larsen chipped in 12 and Fruechte added 10.

“I think having a balanced attack was huge for us,” Fruechte said. “When there’s three hitting threats at the net it’s hard for the blockers and defense to key in on one person. Also the back row has been great at getting a good ball up there to make all of the hitters an option so that’s huge too.”

Rampart and Goar all posted double-doubles, with Goar netting 18 digs. Jamie Cairncross led Winona State with 29 digs.

Freshman Maria Wrage added six kills on just nine attempts and had only one error.

After upsetting Palm Beach Atlantic, the Winona State volleyball team faced its next ranked opponent in No. 2 Concordia-St. Paul.

Despite their best efforts, the Golden Bears came out on top, netting a 3-1 match victory Saturday afternoon in St. Paul.

Taylor Goar led the way offensively with 16 kills and 14 digs to record her second consecutive double-double. Goar had success on the service line, adding six aces – something that hasn’t been done by a Winona State player since Mollie Bjelland recorded six against MSU Moorhead in 2007.

“Our offense was very strong throughout the tournament because of how strong we are in all areas,” Goar said. “We have so much talent in every position that the block can’t sit on just one of us. We also have worked very hard focusing on getting the first pass before we worry about anything else.”

The Warriors ran out to a four-point lead, 13-9, in the first set but Concordia claimed seven of the next eight points to retake the lead at 16-14. Three consecutive kills by Goar, Maria Fruechte and Maria Wrage brought the Warriors back and after Lauren Kudronowicz got an ace to tie things up at 23, CSP claimed the final points to take the first set 25-23.

Game two saw the Warriors down 4-0 early, but a 7-1 run gave Winona State a 10-9 lead. After the game was tied at 13, Concordia used a 5-0 run to take the lead but Winona State answered with a 4-0 run to cut the score to 18-17. The Warriors regained the lead at 21-20, but Concordia answered with the points that mattered most and ended the set with a 25-21 victory.

The third game featured runs also, as Winona State gave themselves an 8-1 advantage, but the Golden Bears answered with a 9-1 run of their own to knot it up at 9-9. The rest of the set would have eight ties before the Warriors pulled ahead and eventually won 25-23.

“With volleyball there’s always going to be runs for both teams and that’s something every team has to work on,” Fruechte said. “A huge thing for us is playing for one another, so no matter if we’d made a mistake or whatever, we can go out and do better and what’s best for the team. Each person steps up for the one next to us, and that makes pushing through the rough patches a lot easier.”

Set four started with a 5-1 lead in favor of Winona State, but the Golden Bears used a 6-0 run to give themselves a 7-5 advantage. After six more ties, Concordia took a 17-14 lead thanks to a 4-0 run.

Winona State swapped points with Concordia throughout the next 11 points but the Golden Bears capped off the match with three points in a row for the 25-21 final.

The Warriors had their hands full with Anna Schlaak of Concordia, who recorded 34 kills in the game.

Fruechte chipped in 11 kills and Danielle Rampart earned her second straight double-double with 10 kills and 10 digs.

“Our entire team is very competitive, which makes us determined when we are down. We also practice game-like situations where we are down and need to come back,” Cairncross added. “Our team chemistry is great and we rely on each other when we are in those pressure situations.”

Winona State (2-1) hits the road as they travel to Kansas City, Missouri next weekend to play in the Rockhurst Tournament starting with a matchup against Pittsburg State.