BELLEVUE, Neb. -- Outside hitter Eve Fountain slammed nine kills on .474 hitting to lead the 13th-ranked Bellevue University volleyball team to a decisive 3-0 (25-13, 25-17, 25-17) victory over Doane University in the opening day of action at the GoSarpy.com Labor Day Classic being played at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.
Bellevue improved to 7-1 on the season with their fifth sweep on the year. Doane fell to 1-5 overall.
Fountain added eight digs, two blocks, and a match-high three service aces in the victory.
Allie Kerns tallied seven kills on 10 errorless swings for a .700-hitting clip. Haley Fleischman finished with seven kills on .545 hitting while adding three blocks. Kealy Kiviniemi chipped in seven kills while adding two digs.
Mila Aiwohi (22) and Jada Nunn (15) combined for 37 assists while directing the BU offense to a .330 attack percentage.
Taylan Keefer paced the Bruin defense with a team-high 12 digs.
Taylor Sluka led the Tiger offense with eight kills, while the DU defense was anchored by Sophia McKinney's 14 digs.
Game 1: Bellevue 25, Doane 13
Kills by four different Bruins and a pair of aces by Fountain sparked an 11-2 Bruin run as BU grabbed a 19-9 advantage in the opening set. Kerns had four kills on five swings in the first set as BU hit a blistering .650 as a team with 14 kills on 21 errorless swings.
Fleischman, Chloe Cloud, Kiviniemi, Fountain, and Sidney Sledge each had two kills as BU cruised to the 25-13 victory.
Olivia Navarro and Frankie Curren-Graff paced the Tigers in the first frame with three kills apiece.
Game 2: Bellevue 25, Doane 17
Neither team could establish control in the second frame until the Bruins went on a 4-0 run capped by a kill from Fleischman and a service ace from Jayna Hope, giving BU a 14-10 advantage.
An emphatic down-the-line kill by Kerns started a 7-2 BU run, expanding the lead to 21-12.
Doane battled back, going on a 5-2 run to close the gap to six points at 23-17 before a service error and a kill by Kiviniemi gave BU the 25-17 victory.
Kerns, Fountain, and Kiviniemi had three kills each to lead the BU offense in the second frame.
Game 3: Bellevue 25, Doane 17
Kills by Fountain and Sledge helped BU gain an early 10-5 advantage in the third stanza. The Tigers never got closer than four points the remainder of the set as BU cruised to the sweep with the 25-17 victory.
Fleischman led BU in the third with four kills on six swings while adding a pair of blocks.
Up Next:
The Bruins will continue action at the GoSarpy.com Labor Day Classic on Friday (Sept. 1) with a pair of matches at the Lied Activity Center. BU will battle Missouri Valley College at 4:30 p.m. and Central Methodist University at 7 p.m.
