INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – The Bemidji State University volleyball team fell twice on the opening day of the UIndy Invite held on the campus of University of Indianapolis Friday evening to fall to 0-6 on the season. The Beavers (0-6, 0-0 NSIC) began the day by falling to (RV) Wheeling University in three sets (25-20, 25-20, 25-23) but responded by forcing five sets against Missouri University of Science and Technology but fell 3-2 (18-25, 25-20, 25-10, 22-25, 15-11).

Bemidji State hit .162 as a team in the match, an improvement from its previous matches, but couldn't stop a Cardinals' attack that hit .269 as a team and totaled 45 kills to just 13 errors. Senior Anna Averkamp paced the Beavers with 15 kills and hit .120 in 50 total attacks while sophomore Hallie Mertz followed with eight kills and paced the team with a .368 hitting efficiency (8K-1E-19TA). 

Freshman Emily Wade coordinated the Beavers' attack and totaled 36 assists while added six digs defensively, while sophomore Madison Weyker led the Beavers' defense with 19 digs. Redshirt junior Ashley East led BSU's servers with a career-high four service aces while Weyker also added a career-best three aces.

Bemidji State's best match of the season thus far came in game two of the day against Missouri S&T. Down 2-1 in the match, the Beavers rallied in the fourth set to force set five but fell 15-11 in the final set. The Beavers hit at a .228 efficiency as a team, a season-high, while also totaling a season-high 53 kills. However, BSU came just short of earning its first win of the season.

Averkamp once again led the Beavers' attack by tying a career-high with 18 kills while also hitting at a .267 efficiency. She was followed by Mertz who tallied a career-high 15 kills while sophomore Rylie Bjerklie also earned a career-best 12 kills and paced the team with a .360 hitting percentage.

Wade once again coordinated the Beavers' attack and tallied a career-high 44 assists and also picked up eight digs defensively. Weyker led the Beavers in digs with 13 while BSU totaled a season-high nine blocks in the match. Freshman Lauren Sitter led the team with a career-mark of six (0s-6a) while Mertz trailed with four (0s-4a).

Bemidji State opens day two of the tournament tomorrow morning by facing Cedarville University at 9 a.m. CDT followed by the last match of the tournament against Northern Michigan University at 1 p.m. CDT.

For more information on the Bemidji State volleyball program, follow the Beavers on Twitter (@BSUBeaversVB), like them on Facebook (facebook.com/BSUBeavers and Volleyball Facebook) 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 wooden region and located on the shore of Lake Bemidji, BSU 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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