(FLC 25-20, FLC 27-25, BH 25-13, BH 25-14, FLC 16-14)
SPEARFISH, S.D. – The Yellow Jacket volleyball team was rolling after they came back to tie the match after the Fort Lewis Skyhawks jumped out to an early two set lead when the Jackets won sets three and four by a combined score of 50-27.
However, the match turned into the Skyhawks' favor in the fifth set when the game was on the line as Fort Lewis tied the set at 14-14 after the Jackets clung to a 14-12 lead and the match-point. Two points later, the Skyhawks knocked down two consecutive points to win the set 16-14 and the match, 3-2.
Yellow Jacket head coach, Sally Nichols, was pleased to see hard her team played for all five sets. Nichols made it a point to address how tough of a defensive team her squad is becoming.
"Our gals really played with a lot of heart tonight. We have to stay focused and bounce back tomorrow," Nichols said. "Our defense continues to be a strong point. We had 95 digs and 21 blocks. Those numbers are a testament to how hard our ladies worked."
Four Yellow Jackets were in double figures in digs on the night. Junior libero, Kelsey Olson, led the way with 31 while senior Amy O'Neill had 23. Lacy Stevens, who made her first start of the season, turned in a solid defense effort with 15 digs as Meghan Sipe finished with 10. Sipe also fought through an injury on way to seven kills and one block.
Senior captain, Caitlin Templeton, led the offensive attack with 18 kills and added four digs, as fellow senior Amy O'Neill finished with 17 kills to give her a double-double on the night with her 23 digs. Holly Hamlin continued to come on strong after her second straight match of double figure kills with 11. Hamlin remained in the top-two in the RMAC in blocks after stuffing Fort Lewis six times on the night.
BHSU's freshman setter, Brynn Eckhardt, had a season-high 57 assists along with seven blocks to remain the only freshman in the top five in the RMAC in assists. Shelby Mayer threw in seven more blocks which helped the Jackets capitalize on many opportunities to gain significant points throughout the match.
The Skyhawks used a combination of Ashley Wells (17 kills), Hannah Starbuck (10 kills), and Madi Bickle (10 kills) in their offensive attack while Wells and Jenna Kinzer combined for 46 digs. Kristin Stephan led Fort Lewis with four blocks as Bickle and Stephani Sonka combined for six more.
The most successful set for the Yellow Jackets was in the third where they won by 11 and hit a match-high .333 average after going 12-of-24 on attacks with just four hitting errors. Meanwhile, Fort Lewis never hit above the .200 mark after the first set. However, Fort Lewis' 11 kills to BHSU's eight in the final set was the difference in the match.
Tomorrow night, Oct. 12th, the Jackets will face the conference's second-place team in Colorado Mesa University (13-2, 6-1 RMAC) at 4 p.m. MT from the Young Center.
Be sure to check back to bhsuathletics.com, follow us on twitter @BHSUAthletics and like us on Facebook for all of the latest news and information on the weekend's events.
