Middles lead BU in sweep over No. 18 Morningside

Box Score

BELLEVUE, Neb. -- Middle blockers Jaclyn Thorson and Maureen Wardian combined for 23 kills to lead No. 17 Bellevue University over No. 18 Morningside 3-0 (25-23, 31-29, 25-20) in the Bruins' final match of the Bruin Labor Day Classic Saturday afternoon at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.

The Bruins improved to 6-3 on the season with the win, while Morningside fell to 5-4 overall.

Thorson smashed a season-high 13 kills on .435 hitting while adding four blocks. Wardian also hit .435 with 10 kills and five blocks. Junior Ashley Wurdeman collected nine kills and freshman Annie Benson gathered eight kills in Bellevue's balanced attack.

Sophomore setter Jordan Broady, who was named to the all-tournament team, narrowly missed her sixth double-double of the season, finishing with 38 assists, nine digs, five blocks, and three kills. Freshman Andrea Johnson also finished with nine digs, while Kirstine Linebaugh and Katy Gregory registered eight digs apiece.

The Bruins battled back from a five-point deficit midway through the opening set, going on an 8-3 run to tie the score at 20-20. Both teams traded points before an attack error by Morningside's Riley Callan and a service ace by Gregory gave BU the opening frame, 25-23.

The second set featured 11 ties and four lead changes as neither team gained more than a three-point advantage throughout the back-and-forth affair. Bellevue had two game points at 24-22, before Morningside scored three-consecutive points on three-straight Bruin attack errors. Both teams squandered four game points before consecutive Mustang attack errors allowed BU to take the thriller, 31-29.

Just like the opening two sets, the third frame was tight throughout with 12 ties and neither team leading by more than two points, before the Bruins closed the match on a 6-1 run which featured kills by Wardian and Benson, a service ace by freshman Sydney DeBoer and a block by Wardian and junior Katie Kuntz.

Bellevue held a 9-6 advantage in blocks as BU limited the Mustangs to a .120 attack percentage in the match. Bellevue hit at a .225 clip.

The Bruins will open conference play next Friday, Sept. 10, with a pair of matches against Central Christian College, beginning at 5 p.m. at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.

All-Tournament Team
Chelsey Quigley – York
Katie O'Connor Benedictine
Jordan Broady – Bellevue
Takara Bighorse – Haskell
Tina Frick – Tabor
Liz Hervert, Hastings College
Jana Smith - Baker
DeeAnn Garvin – Olivet Nazarene
Kelsey Abels, Midland Lutheran
Emily Max, Doane
Chelsea Vaudt, Concordia
Monica Iverson, Morningside