Bruins split at Columbia Classic

Indiana Wesleyan Box Score
Evangel Box Score

Tournament Website

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- The third-ranked Bellevue University volleyball team split a pair of matches on Friday at the Columbia College Hampton Inn Classic, falling in five sets in the opener to 16th-ranked Indiana Wesleyan before rebounding with a 3-0 sweep over (RV) Evangel in the finale.

Bellevue moved to 3-2 on the season with the split.  

The Bruins will host the 24-team GoSarpy.com Labor Day Classic next Thursday-Saturday, Sept. 1-3, at the Lied Activity Center in Bellevue. 

Indiana Wesleyan 3, Bellevue 2

The Bruins dropped the opener in dramatic fashion, falling 3-2 to IWU (25-15, 22-25, 21-25, 25-21, 23-25) in two hours and 35 minutes. 

Sidney Sledge, Sierra Athen, and Jacki Apel combined for 49 kills in the marathon five-set loss to IWU in the opener. 

The Bruins squandered five match points in the decisive fifth set. The 25-23 score was the longest fifth set for the Bruins in school history. 

Sledge came off the bench and finished with a career-high 17 kills on .469 hitting. She also added two service aces and two digs. 

Apel and Athen each collected 16 kills. Athen recorded a double-double with 19 digs while adding a pair of blocks. Apel also contributed with a match-high four blocks. 

Allie Kerns was the fourth Bruin in double figures, finishing with 12 kills while adding eight digs. 

Senior setter Olivia Galas directed the BU offense to a .238 hitting percentage, dishing out 50 assists and 12 digs for her third double-double of the season. She also added three service aces as BU finished with a season-high 13 service aces, led by freshman Kenzie Polk's match-high four service winners. 

Taylan Keefer anchored the BU defense with a match-high 21 digs along with six assists and a pair of service aces. 

IWU's Eva Joldersma led all players with 23 kills, 15 digs, and four blocks.  

Bellevue 3, Evangel 1

The Bruins hit .270 and collected 12 blocks in the 3-0 (25-15, 25-18, 25-17) sweep over Evangel in the finale. 

Apel paced BU with eight kills and seven blocks. 

Galas finished with seven kills on nine errorless swings while adding 28 assists, ten digs, and two blocks. 

Kerns led the BU defense with 13 digs and added seven kills. 

The Bruins held a 50-44 advantage in digs and a 12-2 edge in total blocks in the victory. 

Tory Lowry paced the Valor with seven kills but committed eight errors while adding 13 digs.