Bruins fall in hard-fought 5-setter to No. 6 Viterbo

Box Score

BELLEVUE, Neb. -- The 12th-ranked Bellevue University volleyball team battled back from an 0-2 deficit to force a fifth set before falling to No. 6-ranked Viterbo University 21-25, 23-25, 25-22, 26-24, 13-15 in North Star Athletic Association action Wednesday night at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center. 

With the loss, the Bruins fall to 13-4 on the season and 1-1 in the NSAA. Viterbo improved to 15-2 overall and 2-0 in league play. The V-Hawks have now won eight straight matches. 

Kealy Kiviniemi led the Bruins with 16 kills on .324 hitting while adding a pair of digs. Sidney Sledge added a season-high 14 kills on .367 hitting while also producing five blocks and three digs. 

Allie Kerns finished with 14 kills, seven digs, and two blocks. Haley Fleischman hit .417 in the loss with eight kills on 17 swings. She also added a team-high seven blocks. 

Jada Nunn (35) and Mila Aiwohi (26) combined for 61 assists while directing the BU offense to a .231 hitting percentage. 

Taylan Keefer finished with a season-high 25 digs while adding three assists. 

Grace Rhode led all players with 20 kills. Kenzie Winker collected a double-double with 16 kills and 11 digs. Jada Mitchell produced 13 kills and seven blocks. 

Kenidi McCabe led all players with 33 digs.  

Game 1: Viterbo 25, Bellevue 21

After falling behind early, the Bruins used a four-point run fueled by the serve of Kenzie Polk to tie the first set at 10-all. 

Viterbo quickly built a three-point cushion and led by three when the Bruins used consecutive kills by Fountain and Morgan Wale to pull to within one point at 20-19. 

Three Bruin errors and a kill by Rohde gave VU the first set, 25-21. 

Fleischman led BU in the first frame with four kills on four swings. 

Rohde (6) and Mitchell (4) combined for 10 kills to pace the V-Hawk offense in the opening set as VU outhit the Bruins .311 to .225.  

Game 2: Viterbo 25, Bellevue 23

Consecutive service aces by Maddie Connor helped the V-Hawks build a 13-9 advantage in the second stanza. Two kills by Winker and another by Martina McGrath gave the V-Hawks a 17-11 edge. The Bruins battled back with four-straight points on kills by Fountain and Kiviniemi and a pair of VU attacking errors to pull BU to within two at 17-15. 

The Bruins used a 5-1 run to take the lead at 22-21 capped by kills from Sledge and Fleischman. The two teams traded points until a kill by Marissa Kleman and Winker gave the V-Hawks the set, 25-23.

Fleischman blasted three kills on four swings to once again lead the BU offense in the second frame. 

Game 3: Bellevue 25, Viterbo 22

The V-Hawks raced out to a 10-5 lead in the third before the Bruins responded with a 5-1 spurt to pull to within a point at 11-10.

Viterbo responded with a 4-0 run sparked by kills from Rohde, Mitchell, and Winker to rebuild the advantage to 15-10. 

Consecutive attacking errors by Winker pulled BU to within three points at 17-14. After a kill by Sadie Treptow, the Bruins used a 9-0 serving run by Audrey Sandfort to take a 23-18 lead. 

The V-Hawks countered with three-straight points on a pair of kills from Rohde and another from Winker to make it a two-point contest at 23-21. 

A service error by Mia Quist gave the Bruins three set points at 24-21. After a kill by Rohde, the Bruins ended the set on a kill by Sledge to earn the 25-22 victory. 

Game 4: Bellevue 26, Viterbo 24

After once again falling behind early, the Bruins used a 7-2 run to grab a 9-7 lead in the fourth.  

BU led 15-12 following an attacking error by Winker. The Bruins maintained a three-point advantage until VU used a 3-0 run to knot the fourth at 19-19.

A Bruin service error and a block by Kleman and McGrath on Morgan Wale helped the V-Hawks regain the lead at 21-20. The two teams traded the next five points until a kill by Rhode gave the V-Hawks match point at 24-23. Three straight kills from Kerns gave BU the fourth set 26-24, forcing a deciding set.

Game 5: Viterbo 15, Bellevue 13

Two straight blocks by Kleman and Mitchell on Kerns gave VU an early 4-1 edge. The Bruins answered with three kills by Kiviniemi in a 5-1 run to take a 6-5 lead.

After the Bruins scored five straight to pull ahead 11-6, the V-Hawks responded with six consecutive points to take a 12-11 advantage. 

Two straight VU blocks gave the V-Hawks the match, 15-13. 

Up Next:

The Bruins will host Waldorf University at 2 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 22, in the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.