Bruins finish strong in five-game loss

COLUMBIA, MO -- Bellevue University had their season end at the NAIA Volleyball National Tournament on Thursday afternoon following a tough five-game loss to Savannah College of Art and Design; 23-30, 30-32, 30-25, 31-29, 16-18.

Bellevue, down two games to none, rallied in game three 30-25 to force a game four. The Bruins opened up a game three nine-point 16-7 lead, but a SCAD timeout fueled a Bee's 13-4 run tying the game at 20's. The Bruins then went on a 8-3 run to stop the SCAD rally closing out the victory.

In game four, Bellevue opened up another large eight-point 16-12 lead, but watched it disappear as the Bee's scored 15 of the games next 24 points to even things up at 27-27.

The Bruins scored the next two points (29-27) but SCAD answered back with two points of their own putting the score at 29-29 for the games seventh tie. This time, Bellevue didn't back down and forced a fifth game with the 31-29 victory.

Bellevue, with six points to go and holding onto a 9-5, four-point lead, only needed to side-out the remainder of the game to record their first victory of the tournament; however, SCAD had different plans and went on a 5-1 run forcing a Bellevue timeout leading by one (11-10).

With the Bruins serving match point, 14-12, the Bee's scored the next two points tying the score at 14 a piece. Bellevue had a third match point at 15-14, but again, SCAD answered back.

SCAD picked up their first lead since 4-3 breaking 16-16 tie to serve for match-point at 17-16. Bellevue's season ended with a SCAD kill taking the victory 18-16.

Rachel Muller led the Bruins (27-14) for the third straight match with 19 kills hitting .231 adding 21 digs. Senior's, Alicia Oakeson and Jennifer Horne, added 15 and 10 kills respectively. Oakeson had 20 digs and a team-high three service aces. Horne added 2 block assists while freshman, Jaclyn Thorson, recorded 13 kills and 5 block assists.

Candace Clow (DuBois, Neb.) had 56 set assists, tying her fourth highest assist output of the season, with 4 kills, 13 digs and 6 total blocks. Katy Gregory added 17 digs defensively while the Bruins, as a team, had 23 total blocks. Senior, Jenny Kozlik, contributed 9 digs for the Bruins.

Savannah College of Art and Design (24-12) had 19 kills from Cristian Payne and a match-high 23 digs. Cindy Stayton added 13 kills in the victory with 9 digs and an ace.

The Bees, as a team, had 11 service aces, led by Brittany Stewart with 5 as she added 17 digs and 3 kills. Arynn Nease and Kelsey Coffey had 12 and 10 digs respectively while Katie Richardson led the team with 7 total blocks. Richardson also had 8 kills offensively.

A special thanks to senior's, Jennifer Horne, Jenny Kozlik and Alicia Oakeson for your years at Bellevue along with being a part of the program's first-ever region IV tournament championship and the programs first-ever regular season league title. Also, a special thanks to your family and friends who have supported you throughout your career at Bellevue.

Mullers' 17 kills not enough in loss

COLUMBIA, MO -- The Bruins, needing a victory over sixth-seeded Lindenwood University on Thursday morning to stay alive, fell short despite forcing a fourth game against the Lady Lions.

Bellevue, after dropping the first two games, rallied in game three with the scored tied at 18-18. Kayla Gaughen scored on a service ace and the Bruins then closed out the game on a 13-3 run.

The Bruins, 27-13, had their chances improve after Lindenwood suffered an injury to their leading hitter, but were unable to nab a game four victory. Bellevue and Lindenwood were tied at 17-17, but this time, the final 17-10 run went to the Lady Lions sealing the victory.

With the loss, 20-30, 27-30, 30-21 and 27-30, Bellevue will not advance to the Elite Eight on Friday afternoon at the 2007 NAIA Volleyball National Tournament.

Rachel Muller, the sophomore from Omaha, Nebraska, led the team with 17 kills while senior, Jennifer Horne, added 14 in the loss. Freshman, Leah Keller (Barstow, CA), added 14 kills with a team best .250 hitting percent.

Bellevue hit .142 in the match with three service aces and 95 team digs. Defensively, freshman, Katy Gregory, led the squad with a career-high 32 digs. Alicia Oakeson had 2 aces in the match, 18 digs and 8 kills. Horne led the team with 4 total blocks while Candace Clow recorded 46 set assists and 13 digs.

Lindenwood University improves to 41-6 on the season getting a match-high 13 kills from Nebraska native, Krista Yoder. She went on to hit .414 in the victory picking up 2 aces. Erika Kliokmanaite had 12 kills in two games, after going down with an injury, getting 10 digs.

Lisa Clark had 47 set assists for the Lady Lions while Sarah Gildenhaus struggled but still managed 10 kills. Alyssa Showers had 16 digs getting 13 from Monika Pfeiffer.

Bellevue will play their final match of the season at 3:45 p.m. against Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) this Thursday afternoon.

The Bruin attack struggles in set-back at Columbia

COLUMBIA, MO – Bellevue University took a quick 2-0 lead over the defending national champions catching them off guard in the early portions of game one. The Bruins opened up a six-point margin (12-6) midway through the first match but lost their lead and eventually the match to National American University in three games; 28-30, 26-30 and 18-30.

Bellevue, 27-12, had their opportunities to close out the Mavericks, but perhaps some first match jitters got the best of the Bruins. In game two, Bellevue tied National American at 10-10 closing the gap late at 22-24.

In the closing points of game two, the Mavericks exchanged side-outs and took the victory taking a 2 to 0 games lead.

In game three, Bellevue rebounded against National America after falling behind 3-7. The Bruins battled back going on a 4-1 run to put the score at 7-8 with a chance to tie the game. It was a turning point as Bellevue failed to even the score allowing the Mavericks to close out the match, 22-11, taking the three game victory.

Over the past five matches, Bellevue has played very well at the net, but struggled on Tuesday afternoon hitting only .056 in the loss committing 25 errors and hit -.062 in the final game.

Rachel Muller (Omaha, Neb.) was the only Bruin player to record double-digit kills with 10 in the match as Jaclyn Thorson (Mead, Neb.) had 6 kills and 6 total blocks. Senior’s, Jennifer Horne (Exeter, Neb.) and Alicia Oakeson (Lincoln, Neb.) contributed 5 kills each with five more kills from freshman, Leah Keller (Barstow, CA).

Defensively, the Bruins had 39 digs and 13 total blocks, as freshman Katy Gregory (Bellevue, Neb.) led the squad with 12 digs, 10 more from Muller. Candace Clow (DuBois, Neb.) had 28 set assists, 7 digs and solo block.

National American University, 26-10, got a match-high 20 kills from returning All-American, Daniela Oliveira, and 14 from Thamy Viana. Viana hit .417 in the match. Tais Batistella added double-digit kills, 10, and 4 block assists.

Amanda Silva led the Mavericks with 12 digs and 42 set assists while Dalane Sorelli had 7 total blocks, 3 from Oliveira. National American hit .276 in the match with 6 service aces and 18 total blocks.

Bellevue University will finish their pool play schedule with two matches on Thursday beginning at 11:15 a.m. against Lindenwood University (39-6), the sixth-seeded team, followed by a match against SCAD (23-10) at 3:45 p.m.

BELLEVUE, NE – Bellevue University will find that their next match this season will be at the NAIA National Tournament after they won a hard-fought five-game match over College of the Ozarks, 23-30, 30-28, 30-26, 31-33 and 17-15 at the Region IV Tournament Championship on Saturday night.

Bellevue improves to 27-11 on the season and 16-1 in the friendly confines of the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center while College of the Ozarks will close out their year at 28-10 winning 16 of their last 19 matches.

College of the Ozarks and Bellevue University were knotted up at one game each with the Bruins taking a 2-1 advantage heading into a decisive fourth game. In championship fashion, the Bobcats came out victorious winning game four, 33-31, to force a fifth game.

In two previous meetings this season, these same two teams had victories on opposite courts, with Bellevue’s only home loss this season being at the hands of College of the Ozarks. So, it was only fitting to see these two teams battle to a game five which Bellevue won 17-15 advancing to the NAIA National Tournament for only the second time in school history.

The Bruins had four players in double digits with sophomore, Rachel Muller, leading the attack with 24 kills hitting .254. After a dismal team attack percent in the first and fourth games, Bellevue still managed the victory. Leah Keller the freshman from Barstow, Cali., had 20 kills as Jennifer Horne, the senior from Exeter, Nebraska, recorded 15 kills to hit .400 in the match. Alicia Oakeson (Lincoln, NE) added 10 kills in the victory with 25 digs defensively.

Candace Clow led the No. 1 seeded Bruins with 64 set assists adding 3 kills and 13 digs. At the net she had 7 total blocks, which included 2 solos. Katy Gregory had 4 services aces while Muller had a match-high 35 digs adding 4 total blocks. Jaclyn Thorson struggled on the attack, but defended well with 9 blocks and 6 kills.

College of the Ozarks got two out-standing performances from Brittany Day and Laura Stepp, each with 19 kills in the match. Stepp hit .347 adding 9 total blocks individually. Senior setter, Virginia Austin, had 69 set assists with 4 kills and 15 digs. Other players recording double-digit kills for the Bobcats were Jennifer Nichols at 14 kills, Bethany Bates adding 12 with 11 from Stacy Edwards.

Callie Widel led the team with 31 digs as Day and Nichols each had 16 digs respectively. College of the Ozarks hit close to .250 for the match while Bellevue came out with the tough win despite their .186 team combined attacking percent.

Bellevue will now wait as the rest of the country finishes their tournaments for their National Tournament pool play, seed and times beginning on November 28 in Columbia, Missouri.

Day one Results (November 15, 2007)
#5 Kansas Wesleyan University def. #4 Peru State College (3-1); 30-26, 27-30, 30-18, 30-23
#3 College of the Ozarks def. #6 Park University (3-0); 32-30, 30-27, 30-24
#2 College of Saint Mary def. #7 Bethany College (3-2); 28-30, 30-18, 27-30, 30-24, 15-13
#1 Bellevue University def. #8 Bethel College (3-0); 30-18, 30-15, 30-18

Day two Results (November 16, 2007)
#3 College of the Ozarks def. #2 College of Saint Mary (3-1); 26-30, 32-30, 30-21, 30-26
#1 Bellevue University def. #5 Kansas Wesleyan University (3-0); 30-22, 30-20, 30-26

Day three Schedule (November 17, 2007)
#1 Bellevue University def. #3 College of the Ozarks (3-2); 23-30, 30-28, 30-26, 31-33, 17-15
Championship Match

November 16, 2007

Bellevue University and College of the Ozarks play for NAIA Tournament bid

BELLEVUE, NE – The No. 3 seed, College of the Ozarks, had yet to win a match against College of Saint Mary this season, but picked a prime time to record their first victory defeating the Flames in four games advancing to the Region IV Championship match on Saturday. College of the Ozarks will meet the No. 1 seed and host, Bellevue University, on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. for the Region IV Tournament Championship. The winner will stake claim to a NAIA National Tournament bid held in Columbia, Missouri beginning on November 28.

College of the Ozarks (28-9) dropped game one 26-30, but rallied to defeat College of Saint Mary over the next three games taking the victory powered behind 20 kills from senior middle hitter Laura Stepp. Bethany Bates added 16 kills and 8 total blocks as Virginia Austin had 60 set assists. Stepp added 8 total blocks for the Bobcats as Brittany Day and Stacey Edwards had 8 kills each.

College of Saint Mary (23-13) got a team-high 21 kills from sophomore outside hitter, Amanda Cook, as their season will come to a close. Katie Jo Lawton had 16 kills for the Flames as Annie Jankowski had 56 set assists and 16 digs. Defensively, Cook led the team with 27 digs getting 24 from Kim Belina. Veronica Barrientos had 13 kills (.200) and 2 total blocks.

Kansas Wesleyan University concludes their season at 27-8 after having their 18-match win streak end at the hands of Bellevue University. The Coyotes will lead by Kolby Rhoades with 18 kills getting 7 kills each from Whitney DuBois and Sarah Claborn, who struggled to hit -.133. Kelli Berg had 34 set assists getting a team-high 15 digs from Karissa Kent. Rhoades and DuBois each added 3 total blocks in the loss.

Bellevue University will advance to the Championship match improving to 25-11 on the season. Rachel Muller had 13 kills hitting .353 to lead the Bruins attack. Jennifer Horne had 11 kills getting 9 more from Alicia Oakeson. Candace Clow had 42 set assists as the Bruins had three players in double-digit digs; Muller (16), Katy Gregory (13) Oakeson (12). Jaclyn Thorson and Oakeson each had 4 total blocks in the victory.

Day one Results (November 15, 2007)
#5 Kansas Wesleyan University def. #4 Peru State College (3-1); 30-26, 27-30, 30-18, 30-23
#3 College of the Ozarks def. #6 Park University (3-0); 32-30, 30-27, 30-24
#2 College of Saint Mary def. #7 Bethany College (3-2); 28-30, 30-18, 27-30, 30-24, 15-13
#1 Bellevue University def. #8 Bethel College (3-0); 30-18, 30-15, 30-18

Day two Results (November 16, 2007)
#3 College of the Ozarks def. #2 College of Saint Mary (3-1); 26-30, 32-30, 30-21, 30-26
#1 Bellevue University def. #5 Kansas Wesleyan University (3-0); 30-22, 30-20, 30-26

Day three Schedule (November 17, 2007)
#1 Bellevue University (26-11) vs. #3 College of the Ozarks (28-9) – 1 p.m.
Championship Match

November 15, 2007

Saint Mary escapes upset, Bellevue, Kansas Wesleyan and Ozarks all advance

BELLEVUE, NE  College of Saint Mary escapes an upset at the Region IV Volleyball Tournament as host Bellevue University, College of the Ozarks and Kansas Wesleyan University all advance to the semifinals on Thursday evening at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.

The No. 2 seed College of Saint Mary will face the No. 3 seed, College of the Ozarks, in the semifinals on Friday at 5:30 p.m. followed by the host and No. 1 seed, Bellevue University, against No. 5 seed Kansas Wesleyan at 7:30 p.m. Winners will play in the championship match on Saturday at 1 p.m. with a National Tournament bid on the line.

Kansas Wesleyan University (27-7) got the tournament rolling with a four-game victory over Peru State College (18-16). The Coyotes advanced to the semifinals with a powerful performance from Sarah Claborn recording 41 kills as Kolby Rhoades added 24. The Coyotes got 70 set assists from Kelli Berg as Karissa Kent led the team with 18 digs.

Peru State College will close out their season at 18-15 getting 10 kills to lead the Bobcat attack getting 6 kills each from Keshia Selko, Ashleigh Ravnikar, Chelsea Bergman and Jerlyn Cummins. Selko had 30 set assists in the loss while Afton Burr led the squad defensively with 16 digs, 13 from Jessica Wetzler.

In the second match of the tournament, College of the Ozarks (27-9) downed MCAC opponent, Park University (18-14), in three games, also advancing to the semifinals on Friday night. The Bobcats got 19 kills from senior Laura Stepp in the victory as Stacy Edwards added 11. Senior setter, Virginia Austin had 49 set assists to lead the offense as Stacy Edwards had 5 blocks getting 17 digs from Brette Bollig.

Park University has their season come to end at 18-14 on the year with a team-high 16 kills from Aigline Yoke. Allison Block had 10 kills in the loss while Gabriela Carvalho had 36 set assists and 10 digs. Block led the team with 14 digs while Yoke had 3 total blocks at the net.

The game of the night turned out to be between the No. 7 seeded Swedes of Bethany College and the No. 2 seed College of Saint Mary Flames. The lower seeded Swedes took game one 30-28 but the Flames bounced back to even things up with a 30-18 game two win. After a 30-27 Bethany victory in game three and the Flames needing a win to say alive , College of Saint Mary hit .280 in game four forcing a fifth and deciding game.

Bethany and College of Saint Mary battled down to the wire with the Flames coming out victorious with a 15-13 victory winning the match advancing to the next round. College of Saint Mary (23-12) got a match-high 30 kills from sophomore outside hitter, Amanda Cook, and 23 more from Veronica Barrientos. Annie Jankowksi recorded 79 set assists with 23 digs getting a tournament-high 64 digs from Kim Belina.

Bethany College (23-9) ends their season getting a team-high 23 kills from Lisa Runnebaum. Leah Trask added 11 kills as Kelli Noona recorded 42 set assists in the loss. Britt Westenfelder had 31 digs defensively and 17 more from Stephanie Adamson. Trask led the team with 5 total blocks.

Bellevue University improves to 25-11 on the season with their three-game sweep of Bethel College. Bellevue got a game-high 9 kills from Leah Keller and 8 kills each from Jennifer Horne, Jaclyn Thorson and Rachel Muller. Candace Clow picked up 40 set assists while Muller and Oakeson led the team with 15 digs. Horne had 9 total blocks for a match-high getting 5 from freshman, Leah Keller.

Bethel College ends their season at 21-12 with a team-high 7 kills from Heather Palmateer. Robyn Larson had 13 set assists as the team picked up 33 digs. Sarah Thompson led the team with 4 total blocks as the team struggled to hit .045.

Day one Results (November 15, 2007)
#5 Kansas Wesleyan University def. #4 Peru State College (3-1); 30-26, 27-30, 30-18, 30-23
#3 College of the Ozarks def. #6 Park University (3-0); 32-30, 30-27, 30-24
#2 College of Saint Mary def. #7 Bethany College (3-2); 28-30, 30-18, 27-30, 30-24, 15-13
#1 Bellevue University def. #8 Bethel College (3-0); 30-18, 30-15, 30-18

Day two Schedule (November 16, 2007)
Match 5 - #2 College of Saint Mary vs. #3 College of the Ozarks; 5:30 p.m.
Match 6 - #1 Bellevue University vs. #5 Kansas Wesleyan University; 7:30 p.m.

Day three Schedule (November 17, 2007)
Match 7 - Winner of #2/#3 vs. Winner of #1/#5
Championship Match

BELLEVUE, NE -- Bellevue University wrapped up their record-breaking season claiming their second straight MCAC Tournament title with a three game victory over College of Saint Mary on Saturday afternoon at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.

The Bruins defeated the Flames for the third time this season taking the sweep, 30-20, 30-23 and 30-21 improving to 24-11 on the season securing the No. 1 for next week's region IV tournament.

In the first game, Bellevue and Saint Mary (Neb.) were knotted up at 10 apiece before the Bruins went on a 14-4 run to close out game one. Alicia Oakeson, All-MCAC second team, ran eight straight service to power the Bruins.

With the Bruins down 15-18 in game two, Bellevue went on a 8-0 run after Trish Siedlik timeout. Freshman Nicole Seipold had the Bruins' second eight straight service points to go up 23-18. Bellevue closed out the game two 7-5 to take a 2-0 games margin.

The final game would be all Bruins as they never lost the lead after going up 2-1 in the deciding game. Bellevue, again, would hold strong on their serve to pull away at 13-10, the Flames' closest margin in game three.

Bellevue University, 24-11, got a match-high 16 kills from All-MCAC first team selection, Rachel Muller, hitting .483 in the match. Leah Keller added 12 kills (.360) as Jennifer Horne contributed double-digit kills (10) in the victory. As a team, the Bruins hit .295 for the match with 13 total blocks and 49 digs.

Candace Clow had 46 set assists to lead the Bruins as Katy Gregory picked up 19 digs defensively. Alicia Oakeson and Jaclyn Thorson added 7 kills each.

College of Saint Mary, 23-11, got a team-high 15 kills from All-MCAC first team selection, Amanda Cook as the only Flames player to record double-digits. Cook hit .294 to carry a team hit .176.

Annie Jankowski had 32 set assists for the Flames senior setter as three players had 10 or more digs; Kim Belina with 16 as Jankowski and Cook each had 15. Freshman, Veronica Barrientos added 8 kills with 5 from Emilie Varley.

Bellevue will advance to the 2007 NAIA Region IV Tournament next week. The tournament will begin on Thursday, November 15 at 1 p.m. at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.

PARKVILLE, MO -- The Bellevue University volleyball team concluded their record-setting conference schedule with a four game victory over Park University on Saturday afternoon, 30-20, 28-30, 30-26 and 30-24. The Bruins, 22-11 overall, improved to 13-1 in the league as they wrapped up their conference schedule.

Bellevue got two stellar performances from freshman Leah Keller (Barstow, CA) and Jaclyn Thorson (Mead, NE). Keller led the team with 15 kills hitting .361 in the match with 5 total blocks getting 16 kills (.270) and 3 total blocks from Thorson. Sophomore Rachel Muller (Omaha, NE) added 13 kills and a team-high 21 digs.

Candace Clow had 51 set assists and 7 digs while freshman, Katy Gregory, and senior, Alicia Oakeson had 17 and 16 digs each. Bellevue, as a team, had 9 service aces in the match and 20 total blocks. Jennifer Horne added 9 kills as Oakeson had 8 in the win.

Park University, 18-13 and 7-7 in the conference, lost their final two conference matches and will sit out the MCAC Tournament next weekend and while await their region IV fate at the conclusion of the league tournament.

The Pirates had an attacking percent of less than .100 for the match with Aigline Yoke leading the team with 12 kills. Allison Block added 9 kills while Maria LaCapra had 5 in the loss. Gabriela Carvalho had 32 set assists and a pair of service aces adding 12 digs for the senior setter. Carolina Faria had a match-high 24 digs.

Posting 13-1 record in conference, the Bruins conclude their best-ever league schedule in school history winning their first-ever regular season title. Bellevue will host the MCAC Tournament starting on November 9 at 5 p.m. with the championship match at 12 noon on Saturday afternoon.

The MCAC Tournament seeds and pairings will be officially released on Monday, November 5.

Next: MCAC Tournament (11/9)

DAY TWO - Bellevue finished their tournament in Kentucky at the Georgetown Boneyard Brawl at 2-2 with a 1-1 record on Saturday. The Bruins rebounded from last night's loss with a morning victory over the University of Mobile in four games, 28-30, 30-28, 30-21 and 30-27.

The Bruins then awaited the loser between the Columbia/Freed-Hardeman match for third place on Saturday evening. Bellevue dropped the match to Freed-Hardeman University in three games, 24-30, 31-33 and 26-30 to grab fourth place at the tournament.

Bellevue, 21-11 on the season, will wrap up their regular season and conference schedule with a match next Saturday (11/3) at Park University. The match is scheduled for a 12 noon start.

The week following, Bellevue with host the MCAC Tournament on November 9-10 and the NAIA Region IV Tournament on November 15-17.

DAY ONE -The Bellevue University volleyball team went 1-1 on the first day of the Georgetown Boneyard Brawl heading into tomorrows final pool play match against the University of Mobile with the bracket play beginning at 12 noon.

The Bruins started the day with a four-game victory (23-30, 30-27, 30-28, 30-20) over No. 21 Savannah Art and Design (SCAD) giving the Bruins their 20th victory of the season.

In the evening match against the host team, Bellevue played tough but dropped a close one to No. 18 Georgetown College in three; 30-20, 30-27 and 30-24.

The Boneyard Brawl will conclude on Saturday morning with Bellevue playing an early match against the University of Mobile at 8 a.m. (CST) before they enter bracket play. The Bruins will play at either 1 p.m. or 3 p.m. (CST) in the tournament to conclude their trip to Kentucky.

Bellevue is 20-10 on the season with three matches remaining on the schedule with it's conclusion on November 3 at Park University starting at 12 noon.

MEAD, NE -- Bellevue University had to win one of their final two conference matches to seal their first-ever conference regular season title, and they did just that with a four-game victory over Peru State College on Tuesday night at Mead High School, 30-20, 30-23, 23-30 and 30-22.

Bellevue (19-9) ran out to an early lead and game-one victory taking a 2-0 lead after a 30-23 game two victory. The Bruins struggled back and forth against the Bobcats dropping the third game 23-30. Bellevue toughened up in the fourth game as they fell behind 1-4 early, but rallied back to take a 9-6 lead. Bellevue slowly built on their three-point lead taking game four sealing the conference title.

With the victory, Bellevue, 12-1 in the conference, will host the MCAC Tournament beginning on Friday, November 9 with the championship match on Saturday, November 10. This will be the first time the Bruins have ever hosted the league tournament, in addition to the region tournament that starts the following week (Nov. 15-17).

Jennifer Horne (Exeter, Neb.) led the Bellevue Bruins with 21 kills hitting .450 in the match as Jaclyn Thorson, playing in her high school gym, added 16 kills (.484). Leah Keller had her 10^th match of the season with double-digits kills (10) as Rachel Muller and Alicia Oakeson added 9 and 8 kills respectively.

Candace Clow (DeBois, Neb.) had 60 set assists, her second 60-plus assists match of the year, adding 5 kills and 9 digs. Defensively, Thorson had 4 total blocks getting 3 blocks each from Keller and Horne. Oakeson led the team with 20 digs as freshman libero, Katy Gregory, contributed 18 in the victory.

Peru State College falls to 7-5 in the conference and into fourth place in the conference standings tied with Park University. The Bobcats are 16-10 on the season.

Next: @ Georgetown College Boneyard Brawl (Oct. 26-27)

The women's volleyball team inched one step close to clinching their first-ever regular season conference title as they rebounded with a three-game victory over Oklahoma Wesleyan on Saturday afternoon, 30-11, 30-17 and 30-20.

Bellevue improves to 11-1 in the conference and 18-9 overall needing to win at least one of their final two matches to clinch the regular season league title and hosting the tournament starting on November 9.

Leah Keller and Alicia Oakeson led the Bruins with 11 kills each. Keller hit .529 in the match as Oakeson hit .333 with the Bruins, as a team, combining for a hitting percent of .360 in the victory. Candace Clow had 23 set assists as Kylie Davis contributed 10. Freshman Katy Gregory had 12 digs as Jaclyn Thorson had 5 block assists.

Oklahoma Wesleyan, 14-17 overall and 1-10 in the conference, was led in attacking by Tessa Logan with 8 kills getting 7 kills from Vesper Hopkins. The visiting Eagles managed a hitting percent of .012 in the loss as Stephanie Lee had 18 set assists and a match-high 13 digs by Jacque Deal.

Next: v. Peru State College @ Mead High School; 7 p.m. (10/24)

BELLEVUE, NE - - Bellevue University already knew they would have a tough task ahead of them as last time the Bruins faced College of the Ozarks it went five games. In that match last weekend at the MCAC mid-season classic, the Bruins had to come from behind after dropping their first two games (0-2).

On Friday night, Bellevue’s senior recognition, the exact opposite happened as the visiting Bobcats reversed rolls and defeated the Bruins in three straight games after going down 0-2. College of the Ozarks sealed the victory with a match-point ace that fell between three Bellevue passers beating the streaking Bruins 24-30, 24-30, 30-26, 30-26 and 16-14. The Bobcats were the only team to take an early lead in any of the games and held recording their 30-26 game four win forcing a game five.

The loss will end the Bruins’ 10-match win streak, their 10-match home winning streak and will give them their first conference loss of the season going to 10-1. College of the Ozarks will increase their winning streak to five games and will improve to 10-3 in the league.

Bellevue University, 17-9 overall, had a match-high 25 kills from freshman Jaclyn Thorson (Mead, NE) as she hit .293 with four block assists. Senior, Jennifer Horne, had 21 kills (.396) without recording a single block as Rachel Muller and Alicia Oakeson (Lincoln, NE) had 18 and 15 kills respectively. Candace Clow, who has surpassed the 4000 career set assists mark, had 67 assists in the loss and a pair of kills. The Bruins had 7 service aces to 2 of the Bobcats recording 84 team digs, Muller leading the way with 24.

College of the Ozarks goes to 23-8 on the season with the victory. Jennifer Nichols had a team-high 20 kills while Laura Stepp had 17* in the victory. Virginia Austin led the team with 55 set assists while Brette Bollig had a match-high 29 digs. Stepp added 5 block assists getting 7* kills from Bethany Bates and 5* from Kelva Hunger.

Next: Oklahoma Wesleyan University; 12 noon (10/20)

BELLEVUE, NE - - Bellevue University defeated College of Saint Mary in three games on Tuesday night at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center, 30-13, 30-17 and 30-19. Bellevue came ready to play holding the Flames to their second lowest scoring output for a 30 point game at 13 this season. The Bruins ran their undefeated streak at home to ten straight with two more in the friendly confines before post-season.

Bellevue, 17-8 overall and 10-0 in the conference, hit .444 in the match with 53 kills holding the Flames to a dismal attacking percent of .041. Defensively, the Bruins held their side of the net with a team-total 15.5 blocks; six block assists each from Jennifer Horne and Jaclyn Thorson.

Jennifer Horne, the MCAC player of the week, led Bellevue with 19 kills, her 20^th double-digit kill match of the season. Horne hit .548 for the match as senior Alicia Oakeson (Lincoln, NE) hit .435 with 11 kills. Katy Gregory had 12 digs defensively as setter Candace Clow had 10 and 44 set assists.

College of Saint Mary, 16-11 overall goes to 9-3 in the conference. Sophomore Amanda College (Bellevue, NE) led the Flames with 10 kills hitting .086 with 6 kills each from Katie Jo Lawton and Veronica Barrientos. Kim Belina had 10 digs while the NAIA all-time career set assists leader, Annie Jankowski, had 30 assists in the loss.

The loss marks the first time in recent history that College of Saint Mary has lost a three-game conference match failing to score 20 points.

Next: College of the Ozarks (Senior Night), 7 p.m. (10/19)

The women's volleyball team, rated No. 1 in region IV, put themselves in the driver's seat at 9-0 in the conference with four victories this weekend at the MCAC mid-season classic held in Point Lookout, Missouri.

Friday (10/12) --

Bellevue started off the weekend Friday morning with a stellar come-from-behind five game victory over host College of the Ozarks, 21-30, 26-30, 32-30, 30-26 and 17-15. The Bruins improved to 6-0 in the conference after the victory recording their first victory of the season when down 0-2.

Jennifer Horne led the Bruin attack with 25 kills hitting .380 in the five-gamer while Jaclyn Thorson added a career-best 19 kills. Rachel Muller and Alicia Oakeson contributed 12 and 11 kills in the win and managed a team attacking percent of .166. Candace Clow had 56 set-assists and a pair of kills as Katy Gregory led the defense with 24 digs. Oakeson added 20 digs getting 15 and 14 more from Muller and Clow.

Bellevue faced Haskell Indian Nations University in their second match of the day taking a three-game sweep, 30-20, 30-17 and 30-14. Bellevue improves to 7-0 as the only team yet to lose a conference match. The Bruins went to 2-0 after the first day and 14-8 overall.

Senior, Jennifer Horne (Exeter, NE) led the team for the second straight match with 13 kills hitting .481. As a team, Bellevue hit .365 as freshman Jaclyn Thorson had 8 kills inching closer to 200 kills on the season. Kyle Davis headed up the setting duties with 39 assists and six digs while Katy Gregory (Bellevue, NE) and Alicia Oakeson anchored the Bruin defense with 14 and 11 digs respectively. The victory is Bellevue's seventh straight having not lost since National America a month ago.

Saturday (10/13) --

Bellevue University established themselves as the top team in the conference after a pair of victories on Saturday morning. The streaking Bruins have improved to 9-0 in the conference pushing their winning streak to nine matches going to 16-8 on the season.

Saturday morning, Bellevue picked up a three-game victory over Central Christian College making it their third victory at the MCAC mid-season classic. Bellevue swept the Tigers 30-10, 30-20 and 30-15.

In the final match of the weekend, it about ended about the same way it started dropping a game to Oklahoma Wesleyan University to even the match at 1-1. The Bruins won the next two taking the four-game victory, 30-15, 28-30, 30-27 and 30-24.

After this weekend, Bellevue was the only team to go 4-0 at the mid-season classic taking the top spot in the conference at 9-0 and 16-8 overall. Bellevue has five conference matches remaining, four of which are at home where the team has yet to lose a match (9-0). Of the teams remaining conference matches, four of those are against the No. 2-5 spots in the standings.

BELLEVUE, NE - - Bellevue University, No. 24 in NAIA, improved their home winning streak to eight matches following a three game victory over Haskell Indian Nations University on Friday night, 30-17, 30-21, and 30-10. Bellevue hit .277 in the match with 55 team digs and 7 service aces.

Bellevue, 11-8 overall and undefeated in conference at 4-0, was lead by sophomore Rachel Muller with 12 kills hitting .344 adding 11 digs. Alicia Oakeson had 8 digs in the victory as freshman Leah Keller added 7. Kylie Davis played two games recording 25 set assists and 4 digs.

Haskell goes to 1-3 and 2-8 overall.

Next: Park University; 12 p.m. (9/29)

After Bellevue dropped the first game against Park University, the Bruins won the next three to run their unbeaten streak at home to nine and to 5-0 staying atop the MCAC. Bellevue lost game one 25-30 and battled to a 30-27 game two victory to even up the match. Game three went all the Bruins' way with a decisive 30-7 victory closing out the match 30-15 in the final game.

Bellevue, 12-8 overall and 5-0 in the conference, had four players in double-digits kills with Jennifer Horne leading the way with 17 kills hitting .368. Rachel Muller had 14 kills as did Leah Keller while Jaclyn Thorson added 10 in the victory. Candace Clow had 50 set assists and 15 digs to lead the team. Kayla Gaughen, the sophomore from Hampton, Nebraska, had a match-high four service aces.

Park University goes to 9-8 on the season and 1-4 in the conference dropping their last three matches. Aigline Yoke led the Pirates with 18 kills while Allison Block and Lavinia had 9 and 8 kills respectively. Dragana Pupovac had 6 kills in the loss while Gabriela Carvalho had 35 set assists and 22 digs, a match-high. Carolina Faria had three service aces and 21 digs.

Next: @ MCAC Mid-Season Classic (10/12)

BELLEVUE, NE - - Bellevue University, No. 23 in NAIA, continues their winning streak at home running their record to 7-0 with a four-game victory over Peru State College in conference action Tuesday evening, 30-22, 30-17, 26-30 and 30-8. Bellevue ran away with games one and two struggling in game three late then put away the Bobcats in the fourth game.

Bellevue, 10-8 overall and 2-0 in conference, was led by senior Jennifer Horne (Exeter, NE) with 20 kills hitting .625 as Rachel Muller had 16 kills and 19 digs. Freshman Leah Keller had 12 kills in the victory as Jaclyn Thorson added 10 kills and 6 total blocks. The Bruin defense compiled 72 digs with 22 coming from senior Alicia Oakeson. Candace Clow had 12 digs in the victory, 50 set assists and 4 kills.

Peru State College, 10-4 and 2-1 in the MCAC, had a team-high 9 kills from Ashleigh Ravnikar (LaCygne, KS) and Allison Slager (Papillion, NE) adding 8 kills. Chelsea Bergman had 7 kills and 5 digs while Afton Burr led the team with 12 digs. Keshia Selko, the Bobcat setter, had 25 set assists and 9 digs.

The four-game victory gives the Bruins sole possession of first place in the conference at 3-0. Bellevue increases their winning streak to three matches following the win.

Next: Haskell Indian Nations University, 7 p.m. (9/28)

BELLEVUE, NE - - Bellevue University, No. 23 in NAIA, stayed undefeated at 5-0 inside the friendly confines of the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center with a five-game victory over Concordia University Friday evening. Bellevue dropped game one and rallied in game four after being down 10-3 to force the fifth and deciding game. Bellevue opened a quick lead and never looked back taking game five 15-9. Bellevue improves to .500 on the year at 8-8 winning 22-30, 30-23, 17-30, 33-31 and 15-4.

Bellevue University was led by Rachel Muller (Omaha, NE) with 13 kills as she picked up 17 digs. Jennifer Horne had 12 kills as did freshman, Leah Keller, hitting .265 for the match. The Bruins, as a team, struggled on the attack at .155 but were able to counter on the Bulldog errors recording 81 team digs and 19 blocks. Candace Clow, the all-time set assist leader at Bellevue, had 41 in the victory with 2 kills and led the team with 21 digs. Alicia Oakeson added 16 digs and 8 kills as Katy Gregory (Bellevue, NE) picked up 13 digs.

Concordia University, 10-7 on the season, had 14 kills* from senior, Katie Werner and 11 kills* from sophomore, Kelli Ziegler. Kelsey Affolter had 7 kills* in the first three games, but didn’t record an attacking point in the games four or five. Lauryn Nyhoff struggled at the net with 5 kills*.

Next: Central Christian College, 12 p.m. (9/22) - webcast.

* stats are unofficial

Bellevue University struggled this weekend at the Hastings College Quality Inn Invitational going 1-3. Bellevue's only victory came against Dakota Wesleyan on Friday afternoon winning 3-1 then dropping their evening match to Dordt College, 1-3.

Saturday morning the Bruins had a tough road with a morning match against No. 8 Hastings College and No. 4 National American University.

Bellevue dropped their match against the host team, Hastings College, in five games, 2-3 then lost to National American in four games, 1-3, winning game one and playing the next three close.

Next: v. Concordia University (Neb.), 7 p.m.

The women's volleyball team opened their conference schedule on the right foot with a four-game victory against cross-town rival, College of Saint Mary, on Tuesday night, 26-30, 30-17, 30-24,32-30.

Bellevue dropped the first game, 26-30, but won game two by the score of 30-17 powered by a 7-2 run to start the match. In game three, Bellevue, again, opened on a 6-2 run never looking back as the Bruins' largest lead climbed to 10 points. College of Saint Mary made a 9-5 run late, but Bellevue (6-5) held on for the the victory.

Game four was a hard fought battle as both teams went back and forth recording 10 ties until the host Flames scored three straight taking a 16-13 lead. Bruins coach, Trish Siedlik, called a timeout after Saint Mary took a 19-15 lead after consecutive Flame blocks.

Nine plays later, College of Saint Mary's coach, Hokenson, called a time out after the Bruins went on a small 5-3 run closing the gap at 21-22. The match stayed close with the Flames serving for game point (29-27) looking to force a game five.

Bellevue University recorded two straight kills tying the match for the 11th time at 29-29. Two plays later, with the scored knotted up at 30-30, the host Flames were called for an illegal rotation and the Bruins sealed the victory on a Saint Mary attacking error.

The Bruins were led by sophomore outside hitter, Rachel Muller, with 22 kills (.396), a majority of those compiled in games two and three. Senior, Jennifer Horne added 17 kills and 3 blocks as Mead high school grad, Jaclyn Thorson, had 11 kills and 4 total blocks.

Defensively, Alicia Oakeson led the team with 30 digs while Kayla Gaughen (Hampton, Neb.) added 18. Katy Gregory had 8 kills and 12 digs while Muller did her part adding 12 digs herself.

Junior Candace Clow registered 52 set assists and 4 kills as the team had 5 service aces. Bellevue sets the pace in the conference at 1-0 heading into a weekend that will put the Bruins to the test at the Hastings College Holiday Inn Classic.

Next: vs. Dakota Wesleyan University; 2 p.m.

The 22nd rated volleyball team had their four-match win streak ended at the hands of the UNK Lopers in three games on Wednesday night, 22-30, 15-30 and 23-30. Bellevue goes to 5-4 on the season as the Lopers, rated #25 in NCAA DII, will improve to 8-2 on the year.

Bellevue had Kearney tied up in game one, 10-10, but the Lopers pulled away to close out game one on a 22-12 run. In game two, the Bruins struggled to score early falling behind 1-8 to go down 0-2. Game three was a repeat of game one with the scored tied at 12-12, but NCAA DII rated UNK went on a 8-1 run, then swept the Bruin in three games.

Rachel Muller led the Bruins with 9 kills while senior Jennifer Horne (Exeter, Neb.) had 9 kills in the loss. Bellevue, as a team, struggled on the attack hitting only .082 without a single player in double-digit kills for only the second time this season. Region IV and MCAC setter of the week, junior Candace Clow, had 27 set assists, 3 kills and 5 digs. Katy Gregory picked up a team-high 11 digs defensively while Alicia Oakeson and Muller added 9 each.

Nebraska-Kearney (8-2) had a match-high 13 kills from Nikki Scott who hit .765 for the match while Jeri Walkowiak added 10 kills. The Lopers hit .364 as a team with 42 set assists from Cola Svec. Defensively, Kelli Wemhoff had 16 digs as the team recorded 4 service aces.

Next Match: @ #21 Northwestern College (Ia.); 7 p.m.

BELLEVUE, NE - - Bellevue University increased their overall record to 5-3 on the season going 4-0 at the Labor Day Classic this weekend. Bellevue wrapped up their weekend with a pair of victories on Saturday evening against Dakota State University and Midland Lutheran College. Midland Lutheran College went 2-2 at the tournament while Dakota State University fell to 0-4 to open the season. Jamestown College entered the tournament at 4-0 and left boasting a 7-1 overall record, their only loss to the host Bruins. Grand View College went 2-2 as Kansas Wesleyan was 1-3 dropping both matches on Saturday morning.

Friday Results (Aug. 31)

Grand View College defeats Kansas Wesleyan University (3-2): 26-30, 30-24, 16-30, 30-17, 15-11
Jamestown College defeats Kansas Wesleyan University (3-0): 30-22, 30-21, 30-21
Midland Lutheran defeats Dakota State University (3-1): 30-25, 24-30, 30-22, 30-26
Jamestown defeats Grand View (3-0): 30-23, 30-9, 30-18
Bellevue defeats Dakota State (3-0): 30-22, 30-24, 30-13
Bellevue defeats Midland Lutheran (3-0): 30-28, 30-15, 31-29

BELLEVUE, NE - -Bellevue University ran their season record to .500 with a pair of victories on Friday on the first day of the Labor Day Classic being held at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center. The Bruins were the only team of the six at the tournament to post an unblemished record. The Labor Day Classic will resume on Saturday (9/1) at 9 a.m. as Grand View College and Kansas Wesleyan will take the court. The Classic will conclude with a match-up between two local schools, Midland Lutheran College against Bellevue University scheduled at 8:15 p.m.

Kansas Wesleyan opened the tournament with a four-game victory over Dakota State University coming from behind after dropping the first game. Kansas Wesleyan then went on to drop their second match of the year to Bellevue in three games. Jamestown College and Midland Lutheran battled in four games with Jamestown coming out victorious in four. Grand View College handed Dakota State University their second loss of the day in three games, but fell to Midland Lutheran in their second match giving the Warriors a win on Friday. Bellevue University closed out day one action with a three game sweep of Jamestown College handing the Jimmes their first loss of the year.

Friday Results (Aug. 31)

Kansas Wesleyan defeats Dakota State Univ. (3-1); 24-30, 30-24, 30-27, 30-19
Bellevue Univ. defeats Kansas Wesleyan (3-0); 30-16, 30-13, 30-26
Jamestown College defeat Midland Lutheran College (3-1); 26-30, 30-15, 30-24, 30-25
Grand View College defeats Dakota State Univ.(3-0); 30-22, 30-27, 32-30
Midland Lutheran College defeats Grand View College (3-0); 31-29, 30-27, 30-23
Bellevue Univ. defeats Jamestown College (3-0); 30-21, 30-25, 30-26

POINT LOOKOUT, MO. -- The College of Saint Mary women’s volleyball team has been picked as the favorite to capture the 2007 Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship according to the MCAC Preseason Coaches’ Poll released Monday (Aug. 13).

The Flames, who were crowned the 2006 MCAC Regular Season and Region IV Tournament Champions, posted a 37-9 record last season en route to their fourth consecutive appearance at the NAIA National Tournament. 

CSM tallied four first-place votes in the 2007 coaches’ poll, narrowly edging second-place Bellevue University, which had three first-place votes.  The Bruins, who were 31-9 overall and 13-3 in MCAC play last season, won the 2006 MCAC Tournament Championship. 

Park University, which was the only school to defeat the College of Saint Mary in the 2006 conference schedule, picked up one first-place vote to rank third in the coaches’ poll.  The Pirates finished 2006 with a 27-11 overall record. 

Rounding out the final five spots in the MCAC poll are College of the Ozarks, Peru State College, Oklahoma Wesleyan University, Central Christian College and Haskell Indian Nations University.

2007 MCAC Women’s Volleyball Preseason Coaches’ Poll

*2006 MCAC Regular Season Champions
#2006 MCAC Tournament Champions

www.mcac-naia.org