CANYON, Texas -- [box score] It wasn’t the homecoming Bemidji State University head volleyball coach Kim Falkenhagen had envisioned.

When the Beavers took the floor versus West Texas A&M Saturday afternoon for the team’s third match of the GrapvineWoods.com Lady Buff Classic, it marked a return to the institution for BSU’s fourth-year head coach. Falkenhagen’s team was turned away in just three games by the hosting West Texas A&M University (30-27, 30-28, 30-20).

Prior to coming to Bemidji State, Falkenhagen served as an assistant on Tony Graystone’s staff at WTAMU for three seasons. During that time the Buffaloes made three consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament making the field of 16 in 2001.

The 3-0 sweep was not, however, the whole story.

BSU fought hard in the match pushing the game one score to 30-27 and battled back from a 10-3 deficit in game the second to knot the score at 28-28 before dropping the game 30-28. In game three, the Beavers came from behind to tie the score at 14-14 on one of Brie Groskreutz’s (Fr., Reedsberg, Wis.) nine kills. But the Buffaloes would score seven of the next nine points to jump out to a 27-16 lead and go on to win the game and sweep the match 30-20.

Brittney Burns (Jr., LeSueur, Minn.) posted a match-high 16 kills on 44 total attempts while committing just four errors for a season-best .273 hitting percentage to pace the BSU offensive attack. She also collected a service ace, 13 digs and a pair of block on the afternoon recording the Beavers' first double-double of 2006.

Defensively, Bemidji State recorded a season-high 62 digs as Alicia Beaman (Jr., St. Paul Park, Minn.) and newcomer Allison Hyatt (Jr., MineCentre, Ont.) each collected 15 to led all players in the match. Groskreuts added 11.

West Texas A&M had no player tally more than seven kills, but six Buffaloes registered at least four as the team hit .130 (42k-23e-146at).

Bemidji State, 0-3 on the season, will wrap up the 2006 GrapevineWoods.Com Lady Buff Classic with a 5:00 p.m. tilt versus New Mexico Highlands University.

-bsu-