BU drops a pair on day one of Bruin Labor Day Classic

Box Score

BELLEVUE, Neb. - The Bellevue University volleyball team dropped a pair of contests in their double-header on day one of the Bruin Labor Day Classic at the Lied Activity Center on Friday. The Bruins dropped the opener by a 3-1 count to Baker University in the afternoon before falling to William Woods University in the evening. Bellevue is now 0-6 on the season after their performance on Friday.

Match 1: Baker U. 3, Bellevue U. 1

Junior middle blocker Symone Faulkner (Denver, Colo.) tallied 15 kills for an incredible .571 hitting percentage but it wasn't enough as Bellevue University dropped a 3-1 (25-11, 25-16, 19-25, 25-22) decision to Baker University in game one of the 2014 Bruin Labor Day Classic.

It looked as if Baker would cruise to an easy victory after taking the first set by a convincing 25-11 margin and jumping out to a 10-0 lead in the second before Bellevue showed some resiliency and fought back to cut the final margin to a more respectable 25-16 score.

The Bruins continued their strong play in the third set by jumping out to a 15-5 lead before holding on for a 25-19 victory to force a fourth game.

Baker had the better of the contest in the fourth set for much of the early going, leading by as many as seven at 18-11. A furious Bellevue rally – in which they scored 10 of the next 13 points – allowed the Bruins to know things up 21-21. Any thoughts of a decisive fifth set were ended when Baker scored the next three points to go up 24-21 before holding on for the 25-22 third set – and match – victory.

Junior setter Beth Walker (Dubuque, Iowa) recorded 35 of the Bruins' 42 assists to lead the team while also posting five digs and a pair of kills (.500 hitting percentage).

Freshman libero Taylor Holz (Omaha, Neb.) led the way with 12 digs in the match.

Match 2: William Woods U. 3, Bellevue U. 0

Beth Walker recorded 36 of BU's 39 assists but it wasn't enough as William Woods University defeated Bellevue University 3-0 (26-24, 26-24, 25-23) in game two of the 2014 Bruin Labor Day Classic.

Bellevue fell behind quickly in the first set before the teams traded 10-3 runs. Ahead 24-20 and with four game points to work with, the Owls were unable to put away BU as the Bruins scored four straight points to force the tie-break. Ultimately, William Woods would recover and claim the first set by a final tally of 26-24.

BU came on strong in the second set after the scoring was back and forth in the early going, eventually cementing a 13-6 lead on the strength of an 8-2 spurt. The Owls rallied and got a triple set point opportunity with a 24-21 lead before the Bruins scored three in a row to force another tie break but William Woods prevailed with their second 26-24 victory.

The Bruins, once again, got off to a good start by scoring a 7-3 advantage to open up the third set. However, the Owls rallied to claim a 14-9 advantage and held on for a 25-23 victory in the set.

Symone Faulkner again led BU with 14 kills (hitting .333) and while freshman middle blocker Abbi Porter (Sidney, Neb.) and freshman outside hitter Pimi Dike (Bellevue, Neb.) each added seven kills in the match.

Bellevue will continue play in the 2014 Bruin Labor Day Classic tomorrow when they take on Evangel and Culver Stockton at the Lied Activity Center at 11am and 3pm, respectively.