Volleyball Falls To Nationally-Ranked BYU

Friday, September 10

Pittsburgh, PA

12:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

3-4,0-0MAC

#12 BYU

7-0,0-0WCC

Bowling Green

BYU

Photo by: Isaiah Vazquez/BGSU Athletics

September 10, 2021 | Volleyball

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By: by David Dietrich, BGSU Strategic Communications

PITTSBURGH – The Bowling Green Falcons volleyball team (3-4) lost in three sets to No. 12 BYU (7-0) in their opening match of the Panther Challenge. The Falcons increased their point total in each set but could not overcome a strong offensive attack from the nationally-ranked Cougars.

How It Happened
Set 1: BGSU 13, BYU 25
The teams traded points early, with the Falcons tying the match at 5-5 after a BYU attack error. From there, the Cougars went a 7-2 run and forced a BGSU timeout. The Falcons responded with consecutive kills from Kat Mandly, but the Cougars closed on a 12-3 run to clinch the opening set.

Set 2: BGSU 16, BYU 25
Much like the first set, the second set began with each team landing kills and remaining close. Trailing by three, the Falcons would take advantage of two BYU errors and a Katelyn Meyer kill to tie the match at 10-10. The Cougars answered with a 5-2 run, inducing the media timeout. From there, BYU went on a 10-4 run, including a 5-0 run to reach set point. The Falcons temporarily staved off the Cougars with a block from Mia Tyler and Katie Kidwell, followed by a kill from Petra Indrova, but BYU clinched the second set with a kill from Heather Gneiting.

Set 3: BGSU 19, BYU 25
BYU jumped out to a 9-5 lead in the third set, but the Falcons battled back. Kat Mandly registered a kill, Kidwell and Meyer combined on a block, and Jaden Walz landed a kill to bring the Falcons within one. The teams traded service errors, giving BYU a 10-9 advantage. A 7-2 Cougar run ensued, leading to a BGSU timeout. The Orange and Brown came out of the timeout on a 5-2 run, with three of those points coming on kills from Kidwell. BYU answered with a 5-0 run to reach match point, but BGSU rallied and scored the next three points. The Cougars recorded a block to win the set and match.

Falcon Stat Leaders
Kills: Kat Mandly (7)
Assists: Hanna Laube (12)
Digs: Julia Walz (17)
Aces: Petra Indrova (1), Kat Mandly (1)
Blocks: Katie Kidwell (3 block assists)

Notes

Katie Kidwell recorded three block assists, extending her career total and program record to 458.
Freshmen Lindsay LaPinta and Mia Tyler saw action for the first time in their collegiate careers. LaPinta registered three digs and Tyler tallied one block assist.
Kat Mandly recorded a career-best .333 hitting percentage, with seven kills and one error on 18 attacks.
Setter Jaden Walz landed two kills, tying her career-high.
Julia Walz led the team with 17 digs, her second-best total of the season.

Coach Tomic's Take
"When you play against the top teams in the nation, you have to win the serve and pass part of the game to have a chance to beat them. Unfortunately, we did not do that against an excellent BYU team, so the rest of our game plan was hard to execute. We showed in spurts our strengths and how good we can play, but it just wasn't enough. I loved our competitiveness and a never-give-up attitude, and what we saw from some of our younger players who got a chance to play. As always, we will learn from this loss and continue getting better with our skills and execution."

Up Next
The Falcons play two matches tomorrow to conclude the Panther Challenge. The first match begins at 11 a.m. against High Point. The second match begins at 7 p.m. against No. 4 Pitt. The Falcons will have a week off before playing their final non-conference game of the regular season. In the 2021 home opener, BGSU will host Oakland at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 19.

Follow the Falcons
Be sure to follow the Falcons volleyball team on social media
Twitter - @BGAthletics and @BGSUVolleyball
Instagram - 'bgfalcons' and 'bgsuvolleyball'
Facebook - 'BGSU Athletics' and 'Bowling Green State University Volleyball'
TikTok - @bgsuvolleyball
YouTube - 'Falcon Athletics'