CHICAGO, Ill. - Lindenwood (2-0, 0-0 OVC) opened up their second Division I season with two consecutive wins at the Chicago Classic against Oakland (0-1, 0-0 Horizon) and St. Thomas (0-2, Summit League). It marked their second straight season opening up with two wins at a non-conference tournament/invitational.

"I am very proud of this team. Since the season ended last year we have a focused determination to improve and make strides to be better in key areas," said head coach Will Condon. "As a coach it is great to see that effort rewarded with some nice wins."

"Day one is always interesting because the scouting component is removed and it is more about adapting to the situation. I thought we did a good job of making adjustments in the moment. The best part is they are not satisfied and know we have to keep working every day to get a little better. That mentality is great to see from them."

Lindenwood - 3 Oakland - 2 (25-19, 29-17, 14-25, 22-25, 15-11)
The Lions opened up their 2023 campaign with a win against Oakland University at the Chicago Classic, hosted by UIC. Lindenwood led two sets to nothing early, but the Golden Grizzles evened the match to force a fifth match. LU pulled away late in the fifth to snatch the win.

Addy McAleer and Rebecca Janke anchored an offense with 16 kills each. In her first career match for Lindenwood, McAleer set career highs in kills (16), attempts (48), and digs (12). She was one of three players to post a double-double in the match.

During the first set, Nyah Wilson led the charge for the Lions with three kills and two service aces. As a team, the Lions had 12 kills in the first set with a hitting percentage of .267. The defense in set one held Oakland to a .167 hitting percentage with only nine kills.

The Lions' offense had their best set of the series in the second when they put up 20 kills and a .318 hitting percentage. Janke had six kills in the second set alone while McAleer chipped in five of her own. 

Oakland would put the pressure on the Lions during the next two sets, including holding Lindenwood to 14 points in the third set and a .188 hitting percentage. The Golden Grizzles' leading attacker Patti Cesarini had four of her 15 kills in the third set.

After a 22-25 set four loss, the Lions bounced back on the attack to claim the fifth set victory by a score of 15-11. In the fifth set alone, Wilson had two kills and a service ace while Janke finished the match with the final kill to lock up the win.

Allie Otten posted a team leading 35 assists and 17 digs for her first double-double of the season. Wilson also posted a double-double with 15 kills and 14 digs. Freshman Ashley Geluck had seven kills in her first match and a team leading five blocks.

Lindenwood - 3 St. Thomas - 1 (26-24, 25-22, 21-25, 25-21)
The Lions continued their hot start to the season with a 3-1 victory over Summit League opponent St. Thomas. Lindenwood wrapped up their Friday schedule with their second victory in as many matches.

Janke posted her second straight match with 10+ kills with 15 in the win against St. Thomas. She also led the team in blocks with seven block assists. Lindenwood had a total of 14 blocks in the match compared to just five by St. Thomas.

McAleer also posted her second straight 10+ kill match with 11 in the win. She ranked third on the team in hitting percentage with a .286 (min. eight kills). McAleer had an all-around performance with three assists, three digs, and five block assists.

The Lions opened up their second straight match with a 2-0 lead heading into the third set. Lindenwood had double digit team kills in all four sets during their match against St. Thomas with 14 of them coming in the first. They then followed that with a match high 17 kills in the second.

St. Thomas was able to take the third set after holding Lindenwood to 10 kills and a .111 hitting percentage. They were led by Lauren Galvin in the match with 13 kills and a .310 hitting percentage. Ellie Gustafson also had 12 kills in the loss.

Otten backed up her 35 assist first match with 36 more in the second. She also was able to capture her second straight double-double with 14 assists. Jessie Seidel led the Lions with 20 digs on the defensive side of the net.

Lindenwood will be back in action during the Chicago Classic on Saturday when they take on host team UIC at 3:00 p.m. Their final match will be live streamed on ESPN+