CROOKSTON, Minn. – The Bemidji State University volleyball team dropped a tough five-set, Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference match to University of Minnesota Crookston Tuesday (21-25, 15-25, 25-9, 25-21, 15-8). BSU got out to 2-0 lead but the UMC came back to win the next three sets to take the match. Minnesota Crookston improves to 6-5 overall and 1-2 in NSIC action while Bemidji State drops to 4-7, with a 0-3 mark in conference play.

Notables

- Courtney Volkmann (S, 5-7, Jr., Wadena, Minn.) achieved her third double-double of the season with 45 assists and 15 digs.

- Amanda Tronick (OH, 6-1, Fr., Hutchinson, Minn.) also achieved her third double-double of the season with 14 kills and 12 digs.

- Jessica Yost (OH, 6-3, Fr., Bemidji, Minn.) led the team with 18 kills.

-Kayla DeJong (DS, 5-8, So., Jefferson, Wis.) led the team with 23 digs.

Turning Points vs. UMC

Set 1: The Beavers played their best set of the conference season thus far. BSU out hit UMC .300 to .118 and withstood a couple Golden Eagle runs and won the first set by a score of 25-21. With UMC leading 16-15, BSU got a key block by Rachel Craig (MB, 6-2, Jr., Wadena, Minn.) to tie the set at 16 and never looked back. Yost had six kills and Volkmann had 12 assists to lead the Beavers in the first frame.

Set 2: In the second set, the Beavers kept the momentum going and won 25-16. UMC struggled to get its attack on track in set. Minnesota Crookston had nine attacking errors, which was BSU’s margin of victory. Bemidji State took full advantage of those errors and hit the ball even better than it did in the first set as it hit .310. After a Minnesota Crookston attacking error, which put Bemidji State in front 11-10, the Beavers went on a 14-6 run to close out the set. Yost and Tronick each had four kills in the second set.

Set 3: After the break between the second and third sets, the Golden Eagles made some key adjustments and ran away with the third set, 25-9. The Beavers lost their hitting touch from the first two sets and saw their hitting percentage fall to -.040.

Set 4: The fourth set was very close. The largest lead for either team in this set was four points. BSU had a four-point lead at the 6-2 mark and again at the 7-3 mark, but UMC had matched the margin when it mattered most, winning the set 25-21 to force a fifth and deciding set. Craig stepped up big in the fourth set as the junior captain logged seven kills.

Set 5: Bemidji State and Minnesota Crookston, which were both in search of its first conference victory of 2013, traded blows during the opening points of the set. After being tied on three occasions in the first eight points, Minnesota Crookston took the lead 5-4 and did not give up the lead, winning the fifth set 15-8.

Bemidji State returns to action on Friday as it takes on Winona State University in Winona, Minn. at 7 p.m. On Saturday, the Beavers travel to Fayette, Iowa to take on Upper Iowa University at 4 p.m.

For more information on the Bemidji State athletic programs, tickets or schedules, visit BSUBeavers.com, follow the Beavers on Twitter (@BSUBeavers), like them on Facebook (facebook.com/BSUBeavers) or sign up for the TXTUpdates from BSUBeavers.com text-messaging system through the "Multimedia" pull down menu on the main page of BSUBeavers.com.

Nestled in Northern Minnesota’s wooded region and located on the shore of Lake Bemidji, Bemidji State University sponsors 15 varsity athletic programs with NCAA Division I men’s and women’s hockey membership in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, while its 13 NCAA Division II programs hold membership in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC).

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