Bruins overcome slow start to edge Waldorf in five

BELLEVUE, Neb. -- After falling behind two sets to none, the No. 15-ranked Bellevue University volleyball team responded by hitting .368 over the final three sets to earn a five-set North Star Athletic Association victory over Waldorf University on Saturday afternoon at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.

Records:

#15 Bellevue: 17-4 (5-1 NSAA)
Waldorf: 9-11 (2-4 NSAA)

Recap: (15) Bellevue 3, Waldorf 2 (22-25, 22-25, 25-13, 26-24, 15-6)

Bellevue struggled in the early going, falling behind 8-1 in the opening set and eventually trailing by as many as seven points, before making a run. The Bruins cut the Warrior lead to 18-17 to prompt a Waldorf timeout, and again got within a point at 23-22 but consecutive kills from Savanna Cordle and Elisabeth Tramm gave Waldorf the 25-22 first set victory and a 1-0 lead in the match.

The second set saw Bellevue open the scoring with three-straight points. The Bruins grabbed a 12-7 lead before a Waldorf timeout that led to a 9-5 Warrior run to cut BU's lead to just one point at 17-16. Behind the strength of an 8-0 run, Waldorf surged ahead 21-17 before Bellevue ran of a 5-1 spurt to tie the set at 22-all. After an attack error and an Adreanna Vetter service ace, Ariel Pindegayosh delivered a kill to secure a 25-22 second set win for Waldorf an a commanding 2-0 lead in the match.

In the third set, Bellevue and Waldorf played fairly evenly in the early going as the teams were tied at 10-10, following a 3-0 Warrior run. Bellevue rattled off four-straight points to force a Waldorf timeout. The timeout did nothing to slow the Bruins down as they closed the set on a 15-3 run to force a fourth set.

The fourth set featured 12 tied and four lead changes as BU led for the majority of the fourth set and neither team led by more than two points until an 8-2 Waldorf run put the Warriors ahead 22-18. After trading four points, Waldorf led 24-20 as BU faced four-straight match points. Each time Bellevue was up to the task as they scored the final six points, including a kill from Rosa Reed-Bouley to force a decisive fifth set.

In the final set, the Bruins turned dominant in a 15-6 triumph to earn the victory. Bellevue attacked at a .667 clip during the set and did not make a single attack error. The Bruins led 8-4 at the switch and closed the match on a 7-2 run.

Olivia Galas notched her 10^th double-double of the season, totaling 15 digs and 52 assists as she directed the Bruin offense to a .253 hitting percentage on the day.

Coree Lipovsky (.440) and Andrea Carson (.275) led the Bruins with 14 kills apiece and Sierra Athen (.125) added 10 kills despite exiting the match after the second set.

Madi Evans paced the Bruins dig efforts with 24 and Lipovsky led the net defense with six blocks.

Kyra Platzek (.157) paced Waldorf with 17 kills and Cordle (.375) joined her in double figures with 12.

Elisabeth Tramm guided the Warriors to a .159 hitting percentage with 44 assists and notched a double-double by adding 10 digs. Kelsey Sederquest led Waldorf with 23 digs while Abygail Wood and Cordle each notched four blocks.

Up Next:

Bellevue returns home on Wednesday, Oct. 9 to host Dakota State University to close out the first round of NSAA play. First serve is set for 7 p.m. from inside the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.

Notes:

• Bellevue remains unbeaten against Waldorf, improving to 16-0 in the all-time series.
• Coupled with Viterbo's victory over Dakota State on Saturday, Bellevue is now in a three-way tie, with Viterbo and Dakota State, for first place in the conference standings.
• The win was the sixth-straight for the Bruins, who improve to 3-3 in five-set matches this season.