LINCOLN, Neb. – Buena Vista came into Snyder Arena and spoiled the Nebraska Wesleyan volleyball home opener as the Beavers came away with a 3-1 victory in Iowa Conference action on Tuesday night (Sept. 27).
 
The first three sets were very competitive as BVU won set one 25-23, then NWU came away with a 25-20 win in the second set.  A thrilling third set finally went to the Beavers in a score of 30-28, then BVU rolled to a 25-7 match clincher in set four.
 
BVU remains unbeaten in IIAC play at 2-0 and 11-8 overall, while NWU falls to 86 and 1-1 in conference play.
 
Buena Vista jumped ahead 8-3 in the first set and NWU was never able to recover.  They tied the match at 12-12, but BVU regained the lead and got back up by as many as four points.  Once again NWU rallied and tied the set at 23-23.  A service error gave BVU set point and Maddie Bardole and Brooke Runneberg teamed up for a block to seal the win.
 
It was NWU that came out firing in the second set as they led 14-8 early.  BVU slowly climbed back and got within one point at 15-14 going on a 6-1 run.  NWU maintained the lead and went on a 6-1 run of their own to earn the set win on a kill by Karrie Sestak.
 
By far the most entertaining set was the third.  However, it shouldn't have been that close.  NWU was ahead 14-8 and looked to be in control on their home court.  After a BVU timeout, the Beavers rattled off four straight points and 10 of the next 12 points to take a 18-16 lead.   The teams then traded punches as the set had 17 ties and seven lead changes. 
 
NWU had five different set points, but failed to score on any of them letting BVU hang around.  The set went to 28-28, then a NWU service error and kill by Ashley Pelton gave the set to Buena Vista.
 
That loss killed all the momentum for the Prairie Wolves as Buena Vista rolled to a 25-7 win in the third set.
 
The Beavers had 64 kills on the night with a .287 hitting percentage, compared to 46 kills and a .115 team swing percentage for the Prairie Wolves.  Jade Schapp had a double-double to lead BVU with 18 kills and 14 digs.
 
Malory Dahl was the lone NWU player to reach double figures in kills with 11 as she posted a double double of 11 kills and 14 digs.  Dahl also went over the 1,000 career kill mark for her career, becoming the 15^th player in NWU history to top 1,000 career kills.
 
Taylor Crandall posted a double-double of 38 assists and 10 digs, with Lizzy Saale leading the team with 20 digs.
 
NWU will have two more home matches this week as they host Luther College on Friday night and Wartburg College on Saturday with three of the four home matches taking place in one week.