Bowling Green State University Athletics
Bowling Green State University
6-8, 3-0
Kent State
7-9, 1-2
Balanced Attack Leads Falcons Past Kent State
October 04, 2013 | Volleyball
KENT, Ohio—The Bowling Green State University volleyball team improved to 3-0 in the Mid-American Conference on Friday night, posting a four-set win on the road at Kent State University. After losing the first set, the Falcons would sweep the final three sets to win the match—26-28, 26-24, 25-22, 25-19. The Falcons have now won five of the last six matches to improve to 6-8 on the season.
A balanced offensive and defensive approach guided the way for the Falcons in the match, as four Falcons posted double-digit kills. Five Bowling Green players also recorded four-or-more blocks, with Kaitlyn Skinner's career-high 11 leading the way.
Bowling Green would lose the first set on Friday night, falling 28-26. Kent State controlled play early in the first set, as the Falcons were forced to take a timeout trailing 10-5 early on. But, over the next 17 points, the Orange and Brown would turn it around, forcing the Golden Flashes to burn both of their timeouts. After falling behind 10-5, the Falcons would go on a 13-4 run to take an 18-14 lead following a kill from Lindsey Butterfield. Butterfield continued to be a force, as her 17 kills led the way for the Falcons on Friday night. Coupled with just two errors, Butterfield posted a career-best .417 attack percentage.
Kent State would come out of their second timeout strong, going on an 8-4 run to even up the first set at 22 apiece. The Falcons would take a timeout, as head coach Danijela Tomic attempted to stop Kent State's momentum. A Danielle Tonyan kill would give the Falcons a 23-22 lead, but two consecutive attack errors by the Falcons would give Kent State a 24-23 lead. BGSU would stave off set point, as Jelena Sunjic's swing would deflect off a Kent State defender and land out of bounds. KSU would once again take the lead with a kill, forcing another set point. Once again, the Falcons would record a kill to keep the set alive, at 25-25. An error by the Golden Flashes would give the Falcons a chance to serve for set point, but KSU would record three straight kills after that to take the first set.
The second set was close throughout, but the Falcons would take their first timeout, as Kent State attempted to pull away, leading 19-15. Out of the timeout, the Falcons would record two kills - the first one from Kelsey Bates and the second from senior Paige Penrod. Trailing just 19-17, the Falcons would get to within one, at 19-18, out of a Kent State timeout. Tomic would take the Falcons' second timeout of the set, with the Orange and Brown trailing 22-19. In danger of falling behind two sets to none, the veteran-laden Falcons would respond. Penrod and Butterfield would each record a kill, as the Falcons closed to within 23-21. KSU would extend the lead to three, as a Liz Reikow kill gave the Golden Flashes a 24-21 lead. A service error by KSU helped the Falcons narrow the deficit to two, and the Golden Flashes would use their final timeout. With senior Laura Avila serving, the Falcons would storm all the way back, scoring the final five points of the set to even the match at a set apiece.
With momentum on their side following the come-from-behind, second-set win, the Falcons would start the third set strong. Bowling Green would jump out to a 7-4 lead, but the Golden Flashes would quickly come back to take a 10-9 lead. KSU would take a timeout with the Falcons leading 14-12. The Golden Flashes would even the set up at 14, but the Falcons would retake momentum with a 7-2 run out of that timeout. BGSU would be forced to use their second timeout, as Kent State closed to within a single point, at 21-20. The Falcons would show their poise on the road, however, as they once again closed a set strong—scoring the final three points for the 25-22 win.
The Falcons' relentless attack would suppress any chance that Kent State had in the fourth set, as Bowling Green quickly jumped out to a 9-3 lead, forcing Kent into a timeout. The Orange and Brown would extend the lead to 11-3 out of the timeout. KSU would use their final timeout trailing 15-9. The Golden Flashes would eventually close to within four, at 19-15, but the Falcons would withstand the pressure the rest of the way, closing out the match with a 25-19 fourth-set win.
The Falcons were balanced all night long, as Sunjic, Butterfield, Penrod, and Tonyan all recorded 10-plus kills in the match. Both Erica Fullenkamp and Laura Avila notched 25-plus assists for the Orange and Brown. Butterfield's four service aces were also a season-high, surpassing her previous high of one.
The Falcons will now travel to Ohio, for a showdown with the 20th-ranked Bobcats on Saturday night. OU is currently 13-2 overall, and 3-0 in the Mid-American Conference. That match will begin at 7:00 p.m. at Ohio's Convocation Center.
