Bellevue rolls past Carroll for third consecutive home sweep

Box Score
Frontier Standings

BELLEVUE, Neb. -- The third-ranked Bellevue University volleyball team extended its win streak to three matches, sweeping Carroll (Mont.) College 25-15, 25-23, 25-20 on Saturday afternoon in Frontier Conference action at the BU Fieldhouse.

With the win, Bellevue improved to 8-2 overall and 4-1 in league play, while the Fighting Saints dropped to 7-6 overall and 2-3 in the FC.

Senior Eve Fountain led the way with her fifth double-double of the season, tallying a match-high 12 kills on .310 hitting while adding 14 digs. Kealy Kiviniemi added nine kills on a .269 clip and one block. Bentlee Kollbaum contributed eight kills, and Savanna Berger chipped in six kills with a team-high four blocks.

Mila Aiwohi distributed 19 assists and added 11 digs. Victoria Runyan finished with 14 assists and 10 digs, while Ali Butler also reached double-digit digs with 10. The Bruins outhit Carroll .235 to .101 and held a 66-49 edge in digs.

Set 1: Bellevue 25, Carroll 15

Bellevue opened the match on a 5-1 run and never looked back, hitting .324 as a team in the first set. Fountain and Kiviniemi provided early offense with a pair of kills each, while Kollbaum and Berger added momentum mid-set.

After Carroll closed the gap to 5-4, the Bruins pulled away with a 13-6 run. Back-to-back kills by Fountain and Kollbaum stretched the lead to 20-10. Bellevue capitalized on multiple Carroll attack errors and closed the set on a kill from Runyan to take the early lead.

Set 2: Bellevue 25, Carroll 23

Carroll came out stronger in the second, taking leads of 5-3 and 13-10 before Bellevue rallied. The Bruins went on a 5-0 run behind a kill from Rowyn Scheer and an ace by Kamryn Scheib to regain a 15-13 edge.

Carroll surged late, using a service ace and multiple BU miscues to take a 23-22 lead. But Bellevue responded with back-to-back kills by Fountain and consecutive Carroll errors to close out the set, 25-23.

Set 3: Bellevue 25, Carroll 20

Fountain sparked the Bruins in the third set, helping BU jump out to a 10-5 advantage behind three early kills. Carroll trimmed the lead to 20-18 after a pair of Bellevue attack errors and a service ace.

Out of a timeout, Berger and McIntyre recorded back-to-back kills to push the margin to four. Wale followed with a kill and a Carroll error ended the match, giving Bellevue its third straight sweep at home. 

Up Next:

The Bruins will host Montana Tech University next Friday, Sept. 19 at 6 p.m. in the BU Fieldhouse.