CHICAGO, Ill. -- The Augustana Vikings women's volleyball team was defeated on the road on Friday night, falling to the No. 18 ranked North Park Vikings by a score of 3-2.

After the home team grabbed the opening set 25-22 with three late points in a row to close it out, Augustana bounced back with a hard-fought 26-24 set two victory to even the match at one win apiece. Augie fell behind early in the frame and faced a deficit of as many as six at 18-12, but an 8-0 spurt from the Vikings flipped momentum in their favor as they took the lead at 20-18. The two teams continued to trade rally wins and North Park eventually faced set point with a score of 24-23. After a service error evened the score once more, consecutive kills from Jenny Dunder and Emily Schipper put the stamp on the come-from-behind win.

Augustana jumped out in front in the match with another win in set three. Once again, the two squads played to an even score late in the game, setting up an 18-18 deadlock with seven points left for either team to take the 2-1 advantage. From there, a 6-2 scoring outburst from Augie put them at set point, fending off two points from the home team to eventually win on a service error. North Park answered with a 25-21 victory in set four to force a fifth and deciding game. The home Vikings then raced out to a quick 7-0 lead in set five and did not look back on their way to a 15-3 win to claim the match. 

Three players tallied double-digit kills for Augie, led by Schipper with 15, Jaden Julius with 11, and Alexis Richards with 10. Leah Rizzo led a balanced defensive effort with 14 digs.

With the loss, the Vikings see their seven-match win streak come to an end and drop to 17-5 overall on the season. The team will be back in action on Tuesday, October 24 at home versus Dubuque.