PELLA, Iowa -- The Augustana Vikings women's volleyball team found themselves back in the win column on Wednesday, defeating the Central Dutch on the road by a score of 3-1 (25-19, 19-25, 25-17, 25-21).

Augie trailed by as many as four in the first set early on, but eventually caught up to the Dutch to even things at 16 points apiece. Following two straight scores from Central, Augustana answered with four straight to turn a two-point deficit into a two-point advantage. The Dutch grabbed one back to cut it to one at 20-19, but five more in a row from the Vikings sealed the game one victory to take a 1-0 lead in the match. After trailing 18-16, the Vikings scored nine of the final ten to earn the win.

The Dutch returned the favor with an identical score in set two to bring the match to one win each, but it was Augie that broke the deadlock with a 25-17 set three win. Trailing by a point at 6-5, the Vikings put together another scoring run, doubling up the Dutch over the next nine points with a 6-3 margin to put themselves up 12-9. The Augustana lead eventually grew to four at 17-13, but was countered by three consecutive points from Central to bring the differential back to just one. The Vikings responded with seven straight of their own, benefiting from five attack errors from Central to take the lead in the match. 

The Vikings jumped out to a quick 6-1 lead in the fourth set, but had to fend off rallies from the Dutch as the home team cut it to one on three separate occasions. Augie finally broke away for good with four straight at 15-14 to cushion their lead to five. Central got it within two once more, but that was as close as they got as Augie held on for the 25-21 to clinch the match.

Jaden Julius and Emily Schipper tied for a match-high 11 kills to lead Augustana. Amelie Baehr-Ross posted a season-best 33 assists to lead the Viking offense, while also adding five service aces and a team-high 10 digs.

With the win, Augie improves to 3-2 overall. The team will be back in action on Friday, September 9 when they visit the Cornell Rams for a non-conference match. Start time is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. from Mount Vernon, Iowa.