OMAHA, Neb. — The 14th-ranked Bellevue University volleyball team turned in a pair of dominating performances on Friday, sweeping the University of Saint Francis (Ind.) and fourth-ranked Concordia (Neb.) University at the College of Saint Mary Labor Classic, being played at the Lied Fieldhouse on the CSM campus.
With the two wins, the Bruins improved to 6-2 on the season. USF fell to 5-4 and Concordia suffered its first loss of the season, dropping to 5-1 overall.
The Bruins will conclude the tournament on Saturday (Aug. 31) with a 9 a.m. match against Mount Mercy University.
Eve Fountain (12) and Kealy Kiviniemi (10) combined for 22 kills as Bellevue hit .375 as a team in a sweep of Saint Francis to open the CSM Labor Day Classic.
Mila Aiwohi led the way with 18 assists as Bellevue employed a three-setter offense.
Paige Fortkamp totaled 10 kills to lead the Cougars, but USF hit just .075 as a team.
Bellevue was out-dug by Saint Francis 33-28 but totaled 11 blocks to just four for the Cougars. Savanna Berger and Fountain led the defensive effort at the net with six blocks apiece. Fountain added eight digs to pace the Bruins.
Both teams started fairly evenly, with BU taking a 13-10 lead before a USF service error that led to Raeanne Kimoto‘s 6-0 serving run as the Bruins pulled away for a 25-13 win in the first set.
Leading 15-12 in the second, Bellevue engineered an 8-1 scoring spurt behind the service of Lia Aiwohi and Jada Nunn to pull away for a 25-15 victory.
The third set followed a different script, with Bellevue racing out to leads of 6-1 and 12-4 before three straight USF points threatened to make the set close. A short time later, Bellevue countered with three straight points to jump back in front by nine, and the team essentially traded points the rest of the way, with BU claiming the 25-17 victory.
Once again, Kiviniemi and Fountain carried the offensive load as the pair combined for 25 kills in the sweep. Kivinimi produced 13 kills and three blocks, while Fountain registered 12 kills on .435 hitting while adding six digs, two service aces, and two blocks.
Mila Aiwohi recorded her third double-double of the season, finishing with 19 assists and 10 digs.
Lia Aiwohi collected a career-high three service aces in the victory.
BU outhit the Bulldogs .211 to .083 and held a decisive 8-1 advantage in service aces.
Ella Waters paced the Bulldogs with 11 kills and three blocks. Gabi Nordaker added seven kills and four blocks and hit .278.
The Bruins trailed just once in the entire match, early in the first set, but used a 9-2 run to restore order, gaining a 15-10 advantage in the first frame. Bellevue never trailed the remainder of the match as BU recorded its second win over a ranked team this season. BU defeated No. 12 Corban, 3-0, in the season opener.
