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The Austin volleyball team came out strong, but it couldn’t hang on to momentum as it lost to Mankato East in four sets by scores of 18-25, 25-18, 25-22, 25-19 in Packer Gym Monday.

The Packers were tied at 16 in the second game and tied at 19 in the third game, but the Cougars (11-8 overall) were able to pull away both times. The last game saw East take a 14-12 lead before it pulled away.

“We came out strong and then we made way too many errors. We’d get the momentum for a few points and then we’d lose it again,” Austin head coach Nichelle Gabrielson said. “I always say one of the hardest things to coach is effort and tonight we had a lot of girls that were staying on their heels and not just going for the ball like we should be. That’s tough. It’s another night where we’re saying that we lost to a team that we should’ve beat and that stings a little bit.”

Isabella Bolster was big up front for Austin (8-12 overall) as she put down 17 kills and added five solo blocks, while Addison Walsh had 33 digs in the back row. But too often, the Packers weren’t able to get in their offense against the Cougar attack.

The match was the last home match of the season for the Packers, who have two more matches and one tournament before the regular season comes to an end.

“I told them we’ve got just over two weeks left in the season and our season’s not going to go too far if we play like that,” Gabrielson said. “We have some things to work on and hopefully some things to improve on still. Every day we’re still trying to get better.”

Austin stats: Addison Walsh, 33 digs; Isabella Bolster, 17 kills, 5 solo blocks, 4 ace serves; Haleigh Holman, 18 set assists