Box Score | Bruin/Premier Classic
BELLEVUE, Neb. -- The Bellevue University volleyball team opened the Bruin/Premier Classic on Friday with a 3-1 (25-13, 25-21, 23-25, 25-12) win versus Ashford University at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.
The Bruins, ranked No. 13 in the NAIA, improved to 21-3 and will host No. 12 Oklahoma Baptist University (16-4) tonight at 7:00 p.m.
Beth Walker recorded her eighth double-double of the season with 44 assists and 12 digs. She also chipped in six kills and four block assists.
Sunny Bell led a trio of Bruins with double-digit kills, pounding 14 on .545 hitting. Annie Benson finished with 13 kills and 16 digs for her sixth double-double of the year while Sydney DeBoer tallied 11 kills and tied a career-best with eight total blocks.
Libero Meghan Evans anchored the defense with a match-high 19 digs. Evans also added six set assists and one service ace while Kirstine Linebaugh tied a career-high with 15 digs.
The Bruins raced out to a 10-3 lead and the Saints never got any closer than six points the remaining of the opening game as BU won, 25-13. The Bruins forced AU into -.067 hitting with nine errors. DeBoer paced the offense with seven kills on nine attempts.
Trailing 8-5 in the second game, BU scored seven-straight points to take a 12-8 advantage. With BU leading 20-12, the Saints used an 8-1 spurt to cut the Bruins' lead down to just one, 21-20, but BU scored four of the last five points to post the second set win.
The third set featured eight ties and five lead changes. Down by two, 22-20, the Saints closed out the game on a 5-1 run to win, 25-23, and force a fourth set.
The Bruins opened the fourth game on an 11-4 run and never trailed en route to the 25-12 win. BU hit .242 and was paced by Bell and Benson who recorded nine of the Bruins' 12 kills in the stanza.
This marks the second win against AU for the Bruins this season. BU also defeated the Saints 3-1 (24-26, 25-14, 25-15, 25-7) on Sept. 14 in Clinton, Iowa.
The Saints (13-7) were led by Victoria Day and Kristen Kotch who combined for 21 kills.
