BELLEVUE, Neb. - The Bellevue University volleyball team extended their win streak to four by winning a pair of matches on Saturday afternoon on day two of the 2014 Bruin/Premier Classic at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center. The Bruins, having won 15 of their last 17, now stand at 15-13 on the season after defeating Harris-Stowe State University, 3-0 in the opener and topped Peru State College 3-_ to close out the tournament.
Match One: Bellevue 3, Harris-Stowe 0 (25-16, 25-19, 25-9)
Bellevue scored 11 of the first 12 points in the opening set to win 25-16 and didn't look back on their way to sweeping Harris-Stowe in the first of two matches on Saturday.
The second set was a bit more tightly contested with Harris-Stowe staying within four points of the home-standing Bruins through a 19-15 start. Bellevue was just too strong down the stretch in the second set, as they closed out a 25-19 win with a kill by junior Symone Faulkner (Denver, Col.).
Leading 6-3, the Bruins put together a 15-4 run, closed out by three straight attack errors, to put the third set away early and get a lot of playing time for everyone.
Faulkner led the offensive charge for the Bruins, finishing with 11 kills and a .526 hitting percentage, as BU out-hit Harris-Stowe .277-.056 for the match. Freshmen Kamille Smith (Spencer, Okla.) and Pimi Dike (Bellevue, Neb.) each recorded eight kills with classmate Abbi Porter (Sidney, Neb.) contributing a season-high tying seven kills.
Junior Beth Walker (Dubuque, Iowa) recorded her team-high 13th double-double finishing with 33 assists and 14 digs while freshman libero Taylor Holz (Omaha, Neb.) added nine digs defensively.
Match Two: Bellevue 3, Peru State 0 (25-21, 25-22, 25-20)
Taylor Holz fell just one dig shy of a career-high, finishing with 20, as Bellevue won their fourth straight, 3-0, over Peru State.
Bellevue overcame a three point deficit in the first set to claim a 25-21 victory to take a one set to none lead. The second set was more back and forth as there were seven lead changes and 11 ties but, ultimately, BU prevailed 25-22 to take a commanding 2-0 lead in the match.
It looked like Peru State would break through in the third set as they built an 11-8 lead but the Bruins scored six straight to take a 14-11 advantage. From there Bellevue would hold on to claim a 25-20 victory and win the match in straight sets.
Freshman Rachel Wald (Omaha, Neb.) and Kamille Smith led the way with nine kills while freshman Gracie Myers (Treynor, Iowa) added eight of her own. Beth Walker led the way with 31 assists and added eight digs in the victory. BU out-hit Peru State .206-.102 for the match.
Bellevue will return to action on Friday, Oct. 10 when they play the first of two days of the Madonna Classic in Livonia, Mich. The Bruins will take on Rochester (Mich.) at 2:00 p.m. and Georgetown (Ky.) at 6:00 p.m. on Friday afternoon.
Day Two Results:
9:00 a.m. – Ottawa 3, Waldorf 0
11:00 a.m. – Bellevue 3, Harris-Stowe 0
1:00 p.m. – Peru State 3, Waldorf 0
3:00 p.m. – Ottawa 3, Harris-Stowe 0
5:00 p.m. – Bellevue 3, Peru State 0
