GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – Black Hills State volleyball traveled down to Colorado on Friday night to take on the No. 11 Colorado Mesa. Though BHSU kept it close in the first frame of the match, CMU took the match victory in straight sets.
 
The Yellow Jackets (5-20, 0-13 RMAC) were led by Randi Wellhoefer and Audrey Brgoch, who contributed 7.5 and 6 points on six kills each. Wellhoefer added additional points to the BHSU totals with the lone Yellow Jacket solo block and one block assist on defense.
 
Abigail Renner, Alyson Louderback, and Emily Freeland each recorded five kills on the night and combined for 10 digs.
 
Haedyn Rhoades scooped up 14 digs against the nationally ranked Mavericks and put up an assist while Hannah Lamon recorded a team-leading 25 assists.
 
Set One (L, 25-19)
Kills from Brgoch, Freeland, and Renner boosted the Yellow Jackets to a 4-2 start over CMU, but a 4-0 run from the Mavericks gave them the go-ahead, 6-4 lead.
 
Not staying down for long though, the Yellow Jackets took advantage of CMU errors and a Louderback swing to once again change the lead change to a 7-6 scoreboard in favor of BHSU.
 
After CMU took the lead back for the third time in the frame, Renner logged two more kills to give BHSU a 12-10 lead before a 6-2 burst stretched the scoreboard to 16-14 in favor of the Mavericks.
 
Despite another tying score at 16-16, CMU finished out the set on a 9-3 run to take the first set point of the night.
 
Set Two (L, 25-12)
The Mavericks were hot heading into the second set as they quickly sprung to a 7-2 lead in the second set.
 
Later down 18-6, a Freeland spike helped BHSU push out a 5-1 burst to pull back within eight, 19-11, but a 6-1 run from CMU gave the Mavericks a 2-0 match lead.
 
Set Three (L, 25-16)
A bad set from CMU put BHSU on the board first as both teams traded points on the next four services. Following a 10-point streak from the Mavericks, the Yellow Jackets recorded a 5-2 run to shrink the CMU lead down to 14-6.
 
The Mavericks, however, responded with a 5-0 burst to keep BHSU from gaining more momentum. Though Wellhoefer racked up three kills on a 4-1 run on the tail end of the frame, CMU went on to take the match victory with a 25-16 win in the third.
 
Up Next
The Yellow Jackets will wrap up the 2023 campaign on Saturday, Nov. 11 as they head to Salt Lake City to take on Westminster at 5 p.m.