A look back ... The 2019 BU Volleyball Season
The 2019 Bellevue University volleyball season ranked among the program's best overall seasons as BU continued its consistent tradition of success both on and off the court. It marked the 12th time in school history the Bruins qualified for the NAIA National Tournament after finishing second in the North Star Athletic Association regular-season standings. BU finished the year with a No. 19 final national ranking.
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The 2019 Bellevue University volleyball season ranked among the program's best overall seasons as BU continued its consistent tradition of success both on and off the court. It marked the 12th time in school history the Bruins qualified for the NAIA National Tournament after finishing second in the North Star Athletic Association regular-season standings. BU finished the year with a No. 19 final national ranking.
The Bruins started the 2019 campaign with a perfect 4-0 record in the season-opening Keiser University Tournament in Palm Beach, Fla. After surviving in five sets over host Keiser in the tourney opener, BU cruised to three-consecutive 3-0 sweeps including a dominating victory over nationally-ranked Georgetown College in the tournament finale. Sophomore setter Olivia Galas picked up her first of her four-straight NSAA Setter of the Week honors for her performance in the tournament.
BU returned to Florida to face three-nationally ranked opponents at the Bill Marshall Classic in Hastings, Neb. the following weekend. The Bruins suffered their first loss of the season in a hard-fought five-set loss to third-ranked Grand View University before rebounding with a 3-0 sweep over No. 14 Hastings College. BU ended the tournament with a four-game loss to No. 10 Eastern Oregon University.
The Bruins hosted the 25-team GoSarpy.com Labor Day Classic, annually the country's largest NAIA regular-season tournament. Bellevue ended the tournament unscathed, finishing 4-0, highlighted by a four-set win over No. 2-ranked Westmont College. The Warriors finished the season as the NAIA national runner-up. Sierra Athen earned NSAA Attacker of the Week for her stellar performances in the tournament. She collected four-straight double-doubles in BU's four victories. Athen averaged 4.00 kills and 3.80 digs per set while also adding nine service aces, four blocks, and five assists.
Bellevue ended the non-conference portion of the season with wins over College of the Ozarks and Doane sandwiched in between a tough five-set loss at No. 17-ranked Central Methodist.
After opening NSAA play with the Bruins' first-ever loss to Mayville State University, BU reeled off six-straight wins, including three-consecutive sweeps and a four-set upset victory over No. 4-ranked and eventual NSAA champion Viterbo University.
BU ended the first half of league play with a 5-2 record following a five-set loss to Dakota State University.
The Bruins took a break from conference action with a pair of contests at the Grand View Tournament in mid-October. Bellevue swept No. 16-ranked Montana Tech University and followed that up with a four-game win over John Brown University, ending the tourney with a 2-0 mark, improving to 19-5 on the season.
The second off of NSAA play began with the Bruins registering four-consecutive 3-0 sweeps over Dickinson State University, Valley City State University, Mayville State University, and Presentation College.
In the final non-conference match of the regular season, BU visited cross-town rival College of St. Mary, downing the No. 23-ranked Flames in four sets. Outsides Paige Holdsworth and Athen both notched 16 kills in the victory.
A loss to Viterbo, followed by a victory over Waldorf, set up a huge regular-season finale with Dakota State. The Trojans upset BU as the two teams shared runner-up status in the final NSAA regular-season standings.
After opening the NSAA Tournament with a 3-0 sweep over Waldorf, the Bruins suffered their third-loss to Dakota State (in five sets) as BU was forced to wait for word of their post-season fate.
Bellevue received an at-large bid to the NAIA National Tournament and used an impressive 3-0 sweep over visiting Lincoln College to advance to the NAIA National Championship Final Site for the ninth time in school history and the third time in the last four years.
The Bruins narrowly missed advancing out of Pool Play at the NAIA National Tournament, dropping five-set matches to No. 12 Central Methodist and No. 5 Southern Oregon, before ending the season with a 3-0 win over Indiana University-Kokomo.
Quick Recap: With no seniors and only one junior on the 2019 roster, Bellevue ended the season with a 28-10 overall record and a 10-4 NSAA mark, finishing second in the NSAA regular season while advancing to the NAIA National Tournament for the 12th time in school history. The Bruins ended the season with a No. 19 final national ranking.
Post-Season Awards, Honors
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Sophomore setter Olivia Galas became the first player in BU history to earn first-team NAIA and AVCA All-American honors
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Sophomore outside hitter Sierra Athen produced a team-leading 23 double-doubles on the season, leading the Bruins with 490 kills.
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| Junior outside hitter Andrea Carson earned first-team all-NSAA and all-Region honors while being named an honorable mention All-American | 
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Sophomore middle blocker Coree Lipovsky earned first-team all-NSAA and all-Region honors. |
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