NAPERVILLE, Ill. -- The Augustana Vikings men's volleyball was defeated by the No. 18 North Central Cardinals on Thursday in five sets.

The Vikings secured the early advantage after a 5-3 run before the Cardinals got within one with a 7-6 score. Augie notched three consecutive points to move the difference to four and followed with a 5-0 run to stretch the gap to as many as nine after a block from Tom Lamb and Cole Clarke.  Both teams went back and forth with rallies, but Augie closed out the set with a kill by Ryan Huntington to take it by a score of 25-18.

In the second set, North Central broke away from early ties after converting a 5-1 run to make a 13-9 score. Five consecutive points from the Vikings moved the difference to two after a kill by Lamb from Colin Schaefer. Later, another five-point run allowed Augie to clinch the 24-22 advantage after another kill by Lamb. North Central ended the game on a 5-1 scoring spurt to steal the set with a 27-25 score. The Cardinals took the third set by six points to grab a 2-1 advantage in the match. 

In the fourth set, both teams went back and forth with points before North Central secured the early lead. The Vikings stayed within one until a 5-1 run moved the Cardinals' advantage to 16-11. A late nine-point run let Augie overtake North Central and a block by Ben Schultz and Clarke moved the gap to three. The Cardinals got within one but the Vikings secured the set after a 5-2 run to extend the match.

In the fifth, both teams tied three times before North Central grabbed three points to lead 6-3. The Cardinals closed with a 9-5 end to the set to win 15-8. 

As a team, Augie hit .271 percent, while their opponent hit .228 percent. Clarke led the team with 22 kills and 15 digs, while Schaefer notched 46 assists and Lamb blocked eight attempts. 

With the loss, Augie moves to 10-8 on the season and 0-4 in conference play. The Vikings return to the Carver Center on Saturday, March 8 to host No. 4 Carthage.