WAYNE, Neb. — Bemidji State University Volleyball lost to No. 2 Wayne State College 3-0 on Friday. Bemidji St. hit .093 with 34 kills, while Wayne St. (NE) finished at .161 with 37 kills.
The Beavers finished with 55 digs to the Wildcats 48 and held an 8-7 edge in total blocks, but WSC held advantages in attack percentage (.161 to .093) and serving, with seven aces and four service errors compared with one ace and seven service errors for BSU. Bemidji St. also put together an 8-0 run that brought the first set even at 14-14, and
Ava Athman finished with 12 kills on a .310 attack percentage.
Bemidji State's main push in the first set came after falling behind 14-6, scoring eight straight to tie it at 14-14 as Athman put down four kills with assists from
Madison Tripp. Wayne State moved back in front and finished the set 25-20, with Bemidji State getting as close as 23-20 late on a
Grace Hoffard and Tripp block.
BSU led 20-19 late in the second set, but WSC answered with five straight points to move ahead 24-20. Earlier, Tripp helped Bemidji St. build separation by setting kills from
Nevaeh Carlson, Athman and
Ella Kratochvil as BSU led by as many as six at 12-6. Carlson and
Isabella Vander Velden added kills to trim the deficit to 24-22 before Wayne St. finished the set, 25-22.
The Beavers could not recover from an early Wildcat push in the third set, as Chloe Hanel's serving stretch included two aces and helped the home team build a 10-4 lead. Athman opened the set with a kill and added another late, while Carlson and Kratochvil also put down kills for BSU. WSC finished the third set 25-15.
Athman led Bemidji St. with 12 kills while hitting .310 and added five digs and two block assists. Tripp finished with 32 assists, four digs and two block assists.
Ava Boelter collected a team-high 25 digs and added an assist. Vander Velden posted a team-high five total blocks, including one solo block, and added two kills.
Bemidji State is 14-6 overall and 6-6 in NSIC play. Wayne State is 20-1 overall and 12-0 in NSIC play. Up next, BSU travels to Sioux Falls, S.D., to face Augustana University on Saturday, Oct. 17, at 2 p.m.
For more information on the Bemidji State Volleyball program, tickets or schedules, visit BSUBeavers.com, follow the Beavers on X (@BSUBeaversVB), like them on Facebook (facebook.com/BSUBeavers) and like them on Instagram (@BSUBeaversVB).
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 Central Collegiate Hockey Association and Western Collegiate Hockey Association, while its 13 NCAA Division II programs hold membership in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC).
