INDIANAPOLIS—The Bellarmine volleyball team extended its winning streak to six matches and stayed undefeated in the Midwest Region Crossover Tournament today at The Academy Volleyball Club, but it didn't come easily as the Knights fought off a resilient Grand Valley State squad to win in five sets.
 
After a closely-contested first set that the Lakers won 25-22, the Knights built substantial leads in each of the next three sets, only to see Grand Valley fight back in every frame.
 
In the second set, the Knights had a comfortable 19-14 cushion, but the Lakers unleashed a 6-0 run to creep ahead by a point.  Bellarmine managed to regroup to pull out a 25-21 victory and knot the match at one set apiece.
 
Again in the third set, Bellarmine built a nice lead only to see GVSU storm back.  The Knights had a 19-13 edge, but a 5-0 run by the Lakers trimmed the margin to just one.  After Bellarmine finally got a side out, GVSU went on a 6-0 run take themselves to set point.  Although Bellarmine managed to stave off one set point, Grand Valley made their game-ending spurt 12-2 as they took the third set 25-21.
 
As Yogi Berra may have said, it was "deja vous all over again" in the fourth stanza as Bellarmine again found themselves ahead 19-13.  This time, the Knights squelched a big run by the Lakers and held on for a 25-21 win to force a fifth set.
 
In the deciding frame, Grand Valley scored the first point, but Bellarmine got on a roll to score seven straight points to take a 7-1 lead. However, as shown throughout the match, the Lakers simply refused to go quietly and clawed back to get within two at 10-8.  Again Bellarmine shut down the comeback effort as Izzie Salameh notched three kills in the match's final five points to help the Knights pull out a 15-10 set three win.
 
The physically-impressive Laker squad forced the Knights to play defensively and utilize a few different rotations than what BU had been running in the recent five-match win streak. Fortunately for Bellarmine, freshman Julia Dailey came up with her best match as a collegian, racking up a career-high 18 kills, and Salameh, a sophomore middle, also turned in a career-high with 13 kills.  Another freshman, Bailey Roszman, also came through for the Knights during crucial times of the match and finished with 11 kills and a .321 hitting percentage.

Defensively, senior libero Jordyn Kuchenbrod turned in her usual solid performance with a match-high 27 digs.  Junior Jacquie Hornung—usually one of BU's top hitters—showed her defensive prowess today, coming up with 20 digs to help the Knights outdig the Lakers 102-87.  Other strong defensive efforts were turned in by Karleigh Wilson (16 digs) and Abby Schlaug, who had nine digs in limited court time.
 
On the other side of the net, GVSU's Hanna Murdock was a force to reckon with as she posted 20 kills and 13 digs. Jillian Butsavich also was a load for the Knights as she registered four solo blocks and two block assists as GVSU outblocked Bellarmine 12-6.
 
With the victory, the Knights improve to 15-8 on the season and finish a perfect 3-0 in the Crossover tourney as the GLVC's No. 8 seed.  The Lakers, who were the No. 7 seed from the GLIAC, slip to 12-10 as they finish 0-3 in the tourney.
 
The 11th Annual Midwest Region Volleyball Crossover, the nation's largest collegiate volleyball tournament at one venue, features 38 NCAA DII Midwest region programs, including 14 Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC), 12 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC), and 12 Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) volleyball programs.   
 
With nine matches of the tourney still to be played, the GLVC had already locked the best winning percentage, having accumulated a 27-9 record compared to 14-17 for the GLIAC and 7-22 for the G-MAC.  At the conclusion of the tournament, a 20-member all-tournament team will be announced.
 
Bellarmine now returns to play exclusively GLVC matches for the remainder of the regular season. The next action for the Knights pits them against No. 12 Drury on Friday at 7 p.m. Bellarmine and Drury are two of the hottest teams in the conference with both having won their last six matches.
 
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