Falcons Complete Comeback Win In Five Sets Against Kent State To Advance To 11-0

Friday, February 26

Kent, OH

5:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

11-0,11-0MAC

Kent State

8-3,8-3MAC

Bowling Green

Kent St.

Photo by: Stephen Linsky, BGSU Athletics

Falcons Complete Comeback Win In Five Sets Against Kent State To Advance To 11-0

February 26, 2021 | Volleyball

Box Score

By: by Kyle Edmond, BGSU Athletics

Bowling Green, Ohio - The Bowling Green State University volleyball program was able to outlast Kent State for a second straight night, concluding with another five-set victory on Friday night (Feb. 26). After claiming the first set, the Falcons saw the Golden Flashes battle back to win the second and third. However, the Orange and Brown were able to force a fifth set and then clinch the win to advance to 11-0. The Falcons are just the third team in the nation to reach 11-0 this year while also recording the best start to a season in BGSU Athletics over the last 10 years. Bowling Green will be back in action next week when they travel to face Central Michigan for a two-match series set for March 4 and 5.

Set Scores (Box Score PDF)
Set 1 - Bowling Green 25, Kent State 18
Set 2 - Kent State 25, Bowling Green 23
Set 3 - Kent State 25, Bowling Green 23
Set 4 - Bowling Green 25, Kent State 15
Set 5 - Bowling Green 15, Kent State 12

Play-By-Play Notes

The Falcons came out firing in the first set, getting out to a 7-1 lead. A 5-0 run prompted an early timeout from the Kent State bench.
Kent State worked their way back into the set and used a 5-0 run to take a 14-13 lead, but the Falcons quickly tied it back up at 14 all and went on a run of their own, ending at 3-0 to push the score to 16-14 BGSU.
The Falcons later used a 5-0 run to cap a 10-2 stretch to push the lead to 23-16 late in the set, sending them into a 25-18 final.
After starting down in the second set, the Falcons used an 8-2 stretch to work their way back into the set and closed the Kent State lead, tying it up at 13-13 and forcing the Flashes to use a timeout.
Later in the set the Golden Flashes saw a 4-0 run to reclaim the lead at 20-17 followed by a timeout from Bowling Green. The Falcons again worked back into the set, but it was Kent State that claimed it with a 25-23 score.
Early in the third set, the Falcons were able to use a 5-0 run to take a 9-3 lead, but Kent State regrouped in a timeout and had a 3-0 run of their own to trim the lead. The two teams continued to battle through the set up to a 17-17 tie, eventually growing to 22-22 before a final 25-23, Kent State.
The fourth set was another close one early, but Bowling Green was able to add extra points here and there to gain a 14-10 lead before the first stoppage, being a timeout from Kent State.
The lead continued to grow throughout the set for the Falcons, ending at 25-15 and forcing a fifth set for the second consecutive night.
The fifth set saw the Falcons gain a 10-5 lead, but the Golden Flashes continued to fight. In the end, it was the Falcons on top with a 15-12 final.

Falcon Stat Facts

Now at 11-0 on the season, this edition of the Bowling Green volleyball program has recorded the second-best start in program history for both a season and MAC play. The best record to begin a season is set at 12-0 by the 2011 team, although none of the 12 were conference games. As for conference play, the 1992 season had a 13-0 start, although they were broken up by non-conference losses.
As for all of BGSU Athletics, the 11-0 start is now the best across all sports over the last 10 seasons for the Falcons.
With the win, the Falcons are just the third team in the nation to reach 11-0 so far this season with Texas and Kentucky being the only other two programs to do so.
After missing a double-double by a single dig last night, Petra Indrova registered one tonight by the end of the first point of the third set. The double-double is the sixth of the season for Indrova through 11 matches. In total, Indrova landed a team-high and season-high 20 kills on a career-high 52 attacks along with 15 digs.
Hanna Laube tallied an incredible 64 assists over the five sets for an average of 12.8 assists per set on the night and a new career-high. She also landed two aces in the match, bringing her season total to eight, marking a new career-high for single season aces.
For the third consecutive match, Julia Walz surpassed 20 digs, leading the team with 27 over the five sets, but she wasn't the only one. Taylor Haberland logged a career-high 21 digs in the contest for the Falcons. Alex Laboy also registered a career-high 10 digs.
With three block assists on the night, Katie Kidwell totaled 12 over the series to bring her career block total to 445, giving her sole possession of sixth all-time in program history. Kidwell also posted a season-high 17 kills along with a season-high six digs as well.
Joining in on the attack, Katrin Trebichavska was able to land 15 kills for the Falcons while Jacqueline Askin contributed 14, Katelyn Meyer with five, Madelynn Luebcke had four for a new career-high and Laube rounded out the list with two.

Coach Tomic's Take

"We are incredibly proud of our team for showing again so much grit and mental toughness. Winning is hard, and winning on the road against an admirable opponent such as KSU in five sets back-to-back is even more challenging. Matches like these reveal the real character and quality of the team. We had outstanding offensive performances with four players with double-digit kills, but what improved the most from the last night was our defense. We matched a relentless defense that KSU played both nights and had four players with double-digit digs. We will get a well-deserved rest this weekend and get back in the gym on Monday to continue getting better."

Up Next

Bowling Green will be back on the road next week for two matches against Central Michigan on March 4 and 5. The first match, being on Thursday, is set for 4 p.m. with Friday's scheduled for 12 p.m.

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