BELLEVUE, Neb. -- The top-seeded Bellevue University volleyball team advanced to the North Star Athletic Association Tournament Championship match with a 3-0 (25-16, 25-12, 25-13) sweep over fourth-seeded Valley City State University Friday night in the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.
The Bruins (27-3) will meet the No. 3-seed Dakota State University, who upset second-seeded Unversity of Jamestown, 3-2, in the tournament's first semifinal. VCSU ends its season with a 15-14 overall mark.
Bellevue hit an efficient .388 on the night with just six hitting errors.
Kealy Kiviniemi and Eve Fountain led the Bruins with 10 kills apiece. Kiviniemi hit .500 on the night. Fountain added six digs. Haley Fleischman registered nine kills on 17 errorless swings. Sidney Sledge hit .467 with seven kills while adding four blocks. Savanna Berger hit .462 with seven kills while adding four blocks.
Taylan Keefer led the BU defense with 15 digs.
Mila Aiwohi dished out 24 assists, and Victoria Runyan recorded a double-double with 18 assists and 11 digs.
Macy Fridgen paced the Vikings with six kills. Sadie Hansen finished with 15 assists, eight digs, and five kills.
The Bruins used a 9-4 run midway through the first set to gain a 16-10 advantage, capped by kills from Kiviniemi and Fleischman. The two teams traded side-outs until BU closed the frame on a 4-0 run to take the opener, 25-16. BU outhit the Vikings, .268 to .026 in the first set, led by Fleischman's four kills on .400 hitting.
After an ace by Lexi Thorsgard tied the second set at 5-5, the Bruins went on a 6-1 run highlighted by kills from Fleischman and Rowyn Scheer, giving BU an 11-6 edge. Fueled by a pair of kills from Kiviniemi and Fountain, BU increased the margin to eight points at 18-10. Three kills by Sledge sparked a 7-1 run to close the frame as BU cruised to the 25-12 victory. Bellevue did not commit a hitting error in the second, attacking at a .444-hitting efficiency.
Ignited by back-to-back thundering kills from Fountain, the Bruins raced out to a 14-4 lead in the third set. VCSU never got closer than nine points for the remainder of the stanza as BU cruised to the 25-13 victory.
