MATCH 1: Parkside 3, Colorado Christian 0 (25-20, 25-20, 25-21)
MATCH 2: #11 Minnesota-Duluth 3, Parkside 2 (28-26, 25-23, 25-16, 25-21, 16-14)
The Parkside volleyball team hosted the 2021 Hampton Inn Invitational on Friday, the first time any team has played a game in the newly renovated De Simone Gymnasium. After the Rangers made quick work of Colorado Christian, the team lost a thrilling five-setter to No. 11 Minnesota-Duluth.
 
Parkside will battle Quincy on Saturday, Sept. 11 at 10:15 a.m. and Minnesota State at 7:15 p.m. to close out the night.
 
TOURNAMENT CENTRAL
 
HEAR FROM COACH BAREA
"Although we didn't end the night like we wanted, I am very proud of the entire day of volleyball we played," head coach Leigh Barea said. "In our first match, you could see the changes the team made this week in practice that helped us secure the sweep vs Colorado Christian. Against Minnesota-Duluth, we fought and battled the entire way through. In that tight of match against a team that doesn't make errors, we just needed to play a little cleaner which is a great learning lesson for us. It sure felt good to be playing in De Simone again in front of a great, energetic crowd. Looking forward to bouncing back tomorrow."

MATCH 1 RECAP
­­In the first match, the Rangers won the first set on the back of a 4-0 run to close out the set, which featured a kill and two blocks for senior Jazmine Neal. The second set was close throughout, but the Rangers pulled ahead on a 5-0 run led by an ace and a kill from sophomore Jessica Pappas.  Pappas continued to shine in the third set, as she fueled an 8-0 run with five aces to close out the set, and the match.

STATWORTHY
Senior Rachel Hedman led the offense with nine kills in the Rangers opening match of the tournament.  Pappas was electric from the service line, serving nine aces and moving her season total to 16.  She also led the defense with 12 digs in the match.
 
MATCH 2 RECAP
Parkside jumped up 2-0 on the No. 11 team in the nation, winning the first set 28-26 after being down by as many as six points. The Rangers took set two as well, breaking a late 23-23 tie with a freshman Lindsay Krznarich kill and an attack error. The Bulldogs stormed back, winning sets three and four to force the fifth set. The Rangers had a 13-12 lead in the set, but UMD closed out winning four of the final five points to steal a victory from Parkside.
 
STATWORTHY
Pappas had a team-high 17 kills while Hedman and Neal each had 11. Pappas also added three more aces while Neal and Krznarich each had 7.0 blocks. Redshirt-senior Ellie Adams led the way with 31 assists and sophomore Cayla Gutche had 17 digs.