Falcons Battle In Five-Set Loss To Indiana

Saturday, August 28

Indianapolis, IN

1:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

1-2,0-0MAC

Indiana

2-0,0-0Big Ten

Bowling Green

Indiana

Photo by: Mallory Hiser, BGSU Athletics

August 28, 2021 | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score

By: by David Dietrich, BGSU Strategic Communications

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – The Bowling Green Falcons volleyball team (1-2) ended its weekend at the Top Dawg Challenge with a 3-2 loss to Indiana (2-0). Indiana won the first two sets, but the Falcons rebounded and won the next two. The fourth set featured a 17-7 run from the Falcons, helping them push the match to five sets. Indiana withstood a BGSU rally in the fifth, holding on to win 15-12.

How It Happened
Set 1: BGSU 21, Indiana 25
Indiana was able to get an early 5-4 lead and maintain it throughout the set. The Falcons kept it close the entire set, remaining within six points the entire time. Kat Mandly and Katelyn Meyer each had five kills, with Petra Indrova and Katie Kidwell each adding three.

Set 2: BGSU 20, Indiana 25
Keeping with the weekend's theme of competitiveness, the second set featured 12 ties and five lead changes. The teams remained within two points of each other until Indiana took a 21-18 lead, which the Falcons could not overcome. Meyer and Indrova each had four kills in the set.

Set 3: BGSU 25, Indiana 22
In yet another close set, neither team was able to extend their lead to more than two until a late run by the Falcons. Trailing 15-14, BGSU went on a 7-0 run to take a 21-15 advantage, one they would not relinquish. Meyer and Madelynn Luebcke were key for the Falcons on this run, combining for three kills and two block assists. Although Indiana made a run to make it 22-21, the Falcons closed strong with kills from Indrova and Mandly to force a fourth set.

Set 4: BGSU 25, Indiana 12
Carrying the momentum from their third set victory, the Falcons dominated the fourth set. Petra Indrova's kill gave the Falcons the early 1-0 advantage, and they would maintain that lead the entire set. Kat Mandly and Katie Kidwell scored the next seven Falcon points, with Mandly registering five kills and Kidwell recording a kill and a solo block. An Indiana kill made it 8-5, but the Falcons would close on a 17-7 run to push the match to a fifth and final set. Katelyn Meyer registered four kills and Hanna Laube would add seven assists and an ace during this run.

Set 5: BGSU 12, Indiana 15
The Hoosiers were able to start quickly in the final set, jumping out to an 8-3 lead. The Falcons showcased their resiliency, going on a 6-1 run to tie the set at 9. Meyer had two kills and Kidwell had one kill to help the BGSU rally. Indiana's Brenna Edwards broke the tie with a kill, and the Hoosier would register two more to help Indiana clinch a five-set victory.

Falcon Stat Leaders
Kills: Katelyn Meyer (20), Kat Mandly (16)
Assists: Hanna Laube (52)
Digs: Yelianiz Torres (19), Petra Indrova (16), Julia Walz (16)
Aces: Kerstie Shaw (2)
Blocks: Madelynn Luebcke (3 block assists)

Notes

Petra Indrova recorded her third double-double in as many games, finishing with 13 kills and 16 digs.
Kat Mandly registered 16 kills, the highest total of her career.
Hanna Laube recorded 52 assists, the third-highest total of her career. She also had 11 digs, giving her a double-double for the first time this season.
Madelynn Luebcke registered three kills on four attacks, giving her a career-best .750 hitting percentage.
Katelyn Meyer had a hitting percentage of .400, marking her sixth career match with a hitting percentage of .400 or higher.

Coach Tomic's Take
"This loss hurts, but we are so proud of our team and how tough and gritty we played today. We improved in all aspects of the game from yesterday but unfortunately did not play our best volleyball when it mattered the most, in the 5th set. We will learn a lot from this match and use it as a stepping stone in our team's development. We can't wait to get back in the gym to focus on honing so many of our strengths and improve some of the areas that we identified in our first three matches."

Up Next
The Falcons will return to the state of Indiana for another tournament next weekend. BGSU will participate in the Notre Dame Tournament, hosted in South Bend from September 3-5. The Orange and Brown will face host Notre Dame at 7 p.m. on Friday, Milwaukee at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, and Cincinnati at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday.

Follow the Falcons
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