WATERTOWN, S.D. -- The 18th-ranked Bellevue University volleyball team hit a season-high .449 as the Bruins cruised to a 3-0 (25-19, 25-9, 25-12) victory over Waldorf University in the opening round of action of the North Star Athletic Association Tournament being played at the Watertown Civic Arena.
The No. 3-seeded Bruins improved to 23-8 on the season, advancing to the NSAA Tournament semifinals against the No. 2-seed Valley City State University Friday evening at 5 p.m. Waldorf ended its season with a 12-15 overall record.
Kealy Kiviniemi led the Bruins with 12 kills on .647 hitting. Eve Fountain finished with 11 kills and three digs in the win. Every starter hit over .325 in the match.
Raeanne Kimoto finished with a career-high six service aces while adding nine digs.
Mila Aiwohi (22) and Jada Nunn (20) combined for 42 assists.
Taylan Keefer led all players with 12 digs as BU held the Warriors to a .100 hitting percentage.
Kenzie Kidd paced the Warriors with nine kills and seven digs.
Set 1: Bellevue 25, Waldorf 19
Two straight service aces by Kimoto gave the Bruins a 13-9 lead, forcing a Warrior timeout.
Two kills by Kiviniemi extended the Bruin margin to 16-11. After the Warriors got to within three at 18-15 following a BU attacking error, the Bruins closed the set on a 7-4 run to take the opener, 25-19.
Led by Kiviniemi's five kills on seven errorless swings, the Bruins outhit Waldorf, .417 to .308 in the opening frame.
Kenzie Kidd led all players in the first set with seven kills on .438 hitting.
Kimoto had three service aces in the opening stanza.
Set 2: Bellevue 25, Waldorf 9
The Bruins raced out to an 8-0 lead in the second set, fueled by two Kiviniemi kills and another Kimoto service ace. Back-to-back kills by Fountain extended the BU advantage to 10 points at 13-3.
Consecutive kills by Fountain and Fleischman made it an 11-point contest at 15-4, forcing the Warriors to take their second timeout.
Bellevue pushed the margin to 14 points (19-5) following a kill by Sidney Sledge, before BU cruised to the 25-9 victory.
The Bruins hit .467 in the second frame while limiting the Warriors to .000 hitting. Fountain led BU in the second with four kills on six attacks.
Set 3: Bellevue 25, Waldorf 12
Two Fountain kills, and six early WU attacking errors sparked the Bruins to a 15-6 margin in the third frame. A pair of kills by Kerns helped push the Bruin advantage to 11 points at 19-8.
Waldorf never got closer than nine points the remainder of the set as BU earned the sweep with the 25-12 victory.
Up Next:
The Bruins will take on the No. 2 seed Valley City State University (22-8) in the semifinals on Friday at 5 p.m. in the Watertown Civic Arena.
