VALLEY CITY, N.D. (VCSUVikings.com)- The Viking volleyball team had the No. 22 team in the country on the ropes Saturday but couldn’t deliver the knockout blow.
No. 22-ranked Bellevue University rallied from a 2-0 deficit to defeat the Vikings in five sets Saturday in Valley City: 23-25, 22-25, 25-21, 25-20, 15-6.
VCSU drops to 8-8 overall and 2-1 in the NSAA. Bellevue, ranked No. 22 in the latest Top 25 poll, improves to 12-4 overall and 3-0 in the North Star.
Valley City State built an early 2-0 lead in the match with clutch play late in the first two sets. Tied at 18-18 in set one, the Vikings went on a 6-1 run to build a 24-19 lead en route to the 25-23 win. In set two, VCSU led 23-22 before scoring the final two points, including an ace by Leah Ruter on set point.
Bellevue began to turn the tide in set three with a 25-21 victory. In set four, the Bruins and Vikings were tied 15-15 before Bellevue outscored VCSU 10-5 down the stretch.
The decisive fifth set was all Bellevue from the start. The Bruins scored five straight points to take a 7-2 lead, and opened up an 11-3 advantage en route to the 15-6 victory. VCSU also went five sets on Friday night, coming out on the winning end of that match against Dakota State.
Bellevue outhit the Vikings in Saturday’s match, .195 to .067. The Vikings held an advantage in the serving game, racking up 12 aces and just five errors. Bellevue had seven aces and 11 service errors. The Vikings also held a 14-11 advantage in blocking.
Clarissa Olson led the Viking attack up front with 14 kills and 6.5 block points. Paige Benson added nine kills and McKinley Putnam had eight kills in the loss. Leah Ruter posted 19 assists, five aces and four kills. Reagan Ingstad had 16 kills and three aces. Charlotte Hushka had a team-high 22 digs, while Kallene Klever posted 12 digs for VCSU.
Bellevue had four players reach double-digit kills as part of a balanced attack. Andrea Carson led the way with 14 kills for the Bruins. Rosa Reed-Bouley posted 12 kills, and both Sierra Athen and Shayla Scanlan had 11 kills. Setter Olivia Galas totaled 47 assists, 14 digs and two aces. Athen posted 19 digs and Madi Evans finished with 18 digs.
Up next: Valley City State is on the road next weekend for conference matches at Waldorf University (Friday) and Viterbo University (Saturday). Bellevue hosts Mayville State and Presentation College next weekend.