BU outlasts MSU–Northern in five to reach Frontier title match

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Tournament Site

HELENA, Mont. -- The No. 2-seeded and No. 6 nationally ranked Bellevue University women's volleyball team punched its ticket to the Frontier Conference Tournament championship match Friday night, outlasting No. 3 seed Montana State University–Northern, 25-23, 23-25, 25-18, 19-25, 15-12, at the PE Center.

With the victory, the Bruins improved to 26-3 overall and extended their winning streak to 16 matches. The Skylights slipped to 18-12 on the season.

The win, coupled with No. 1 seed Providence's (Mont.) victory earlier Friday evening, gave the Bruins the second league's automatic bid to the NAIA National Tournament Opening Round.

Eve Fountain led BU with 13 kills and 18 digs, recording her team-leading 14th double-double of the season. Kealy Kiviniemi added a match-high 14 kills, and Kamryn Scheib posted a career-best eight kills. Chloe Cloud chipped in five kills and three blocks, while Sophia McIntyre finished with seven kills.

The setting duties were shared as Mila Aiwohi handed out 27 assists, while Jada Nunn and Victoria Runyan added 11 assists apiece. Defensively, Zoie Roghair anchored the Bruin defense with 20 digs. BU finished with a 10–9 edge in team blocks and a 5–4 advantage in service aces.

MSUN was led by a triple-double from setter Macee Selman, who totaled 17 kills, 22 assists, and 11 digs to go with two blocks and an ace. Lexi Jones hit .526 with 13 kills and three blocks, while outside hitters Macy Uffelman and Josie Hasler added 11 and nine kills, respectively. Libero Baily Egan anchored the Skylight back row with a match-high 28 digs, and setter Emily Bird contributed 33 assists and 18 digs.

Set 1 – Bellevue 25, MSU–Northern 23

Bellevue raced out to a 7–1 lead, capitalizing on a string of Skylight attack errors and a block from Cloud and Fountain. The Bruins maintained control through the middle of the set, pushing the margin to 15–9 after a McIntyre kill and a ball-handling error on Jones.

MSU–Northern chipped away late, using kills from Hasler and Uffelman to close within 19–16 and eventually pulling even at 22–22 on back-to-back kills by Uffelman. BU responded with a kill from Cloud out of the timeout for a 23–22 edge, and after a Jones side-out tied it again at 23-all, Kiviniemi delivered her fourth kill of the frame to make it 24–23. A Hasler attack error on the next rally sealed the 25–23 opening-set win.

Set 2 – MSU–Northern 25, Bellevue 23

The Skylights answered in the second set, building an early 5–3 lead behind back-to-back kills from Selman and Hasler. MSU–Northern continued to apply pressure, stretching the advantage to 13–11 and then 17–13 as Jones scored in transition and Selman continued to score from the right side.

Bellevue trailed 20–16 before mounting a key response. The Bruins used a 5–1 surge to tie the set at 21–21, with Kiviniemi registering multiple kills during the run and A'Lailah Perry adding a termination on the left pin. BU briefly moved in front, 22–21 and 23–22, on a Kollbaum kill and another swing from Kiviniemi. With the score knotted at 23–23 following a Selman side-out, the set ended on consecutive BU attack errors, allowing MSU–Northern to even the match with a 25–23 decision.

Set 3 – Bellevue 25, MSU–Northern 18

Bellevue established early control, building a 6–2 lead on a combination of a Cloud kill, a Scheib block, and a Fountain ace. BU extended the margin to 16–9 as Scheib and Berger added kills during a steady mid-set push. MSUN narrowed the deficit to 18–14 with points from Wiggins, Stock, and Selman, but the Bruins maintained separation with side-outs from Scheib and Fountain, eventually reaching set point at 24–17.

The Skylights stayed alive through a Jones kill, two service aces by Bird, and a BU attacking error, closing to 24–18. On the fifth set point, McIntyre put the frame away with a kill for the 25–18 win.

Set 4 — MSU–Northern 25, Bellevue 19

The set was tightly played early, with MSUN leading 5–4 before the Skylights used a 5–1 stretch—highlighted by kills from Uffelman and Selman—to take a 10–5 advantage. BU pulled within 13–12 after a Fountain kill and an MSUN setting error, but Northern responded with a 5–0 run sparked by a Selman kill, a Wiggins kill, and a Selman ace to go up 18–12.

The Bruins twice cut the margin to four, the last at 21–17 after a McIntyre kill, but MSUN closed strong. A Hasler ace and a Uffelman kill pushed the lead to 24–17, and after a Cloud kill and an Aiwohi ace staved off two set points, the Skylights took the frame 25–19 on a Jones kill to force a deciding fifth.

Set 5 — Bellevue 15, MSU–Northern 12

The final set was close throughout, with the teams tied 3–3 before BU used a 3–0 spurt—helped by three Skylight errors to take a 6–3 lead. MSUN answered behind a Uffelman kill and a Stock kill to pull within 8–7, but BU steadied and pushed back ahead 9–7 on a Kiviniemi kill.

After the Skylights tied it again at 9–9, BU delivered the decisive surge. Fountain took over offensively, posting four kills on five swings in the set, including two during a key 3–0 run that put the Bruins ahead 13–10. A Selman kill cut it to 13–11, but another Fountain kill set up match point, and Kiviniemi sealed the victory at 15–12 with her final kill.

Milestone Watch

All-American outside hitter Eve Fountain continued her ascent up BU's career charts:

1,858 career kills, remaining second in program history behind Sierra Athen (1,886; 2018–22).

1,874 career digs, standing sixth all-time after previously surpassing Rachel Muller (1,829; 2006–09) and Brenda Quinn (1,831; 1997–00). She continues to chase Annie Viviano (2,160; 1993–96) for fifth.

Additional career notes:

Mila Aiwohi now has 2,261 career assists, remaining ninth in school history and pursuing Kathy Kent (2,439; 1994–95) for eighth.

Kealy Kiviniemi has increased her career total to 1,139 kills, holding 17th place and closing in on Stacey Hines (1,135; 1998–01) and the next spots on BU's all-time list.

Up Next

By virtue of reaching the Frontier Conference Tournament championship match, the Bruins have earned an automatic berth to the NAIA Women's Volleyball National Championship, with NAIA Opening Round play beginning on Saturday, Nov. 22, at campus sites.

BU will face top-seeded University of Providence in Saturday's Frontier Tournament final, scheduled for 8 p.m. (CT).