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NDNU - Bauder
Adam Washington
3
Winner Biola BU-VB 14-5, 8-3 PacWest
1
Notre Dame de Namur NDNU-VB 11-10, 6-7 PacWest
Winner
Biola BU-VB
14-5, 8-3 PacWest
3
Final
1
Notre Dame de Namur NDNU-VB
11-10, 6-7 PacWest
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Biola BU-VB 27 25 15 25 (3)
Notre Dame de Namur NDNU-VB 25 14 25 21 (1)

Game Recap: Volleyball |

Streak Surges To Six

Biola Volleyball ensures NCCAA eligibility with win at NDNU.

BELMONT, Calif. --- Biola improved to 11-0 all-time against Notre Dame de Namur on Saturday afternoon with a 3-1 (27-25, 25-14, 15-25, 25-21) victory over the Argos. This match was definitely no joke for Head Coach Aaron Seltzer's team as they had to work really hard to stave off a resilient NDNU squad.

The Eagles had not lost a set to Notre Dame de Namur since 1989, but the Argos came really close to taking full advantage of home court and stealing the first set. That would not be the case, but a lights-out third set would allow them to keep Biola from getting its third sweep in a row as they extended the match to its decisive fourth frame.

"It was a good ending to a long week. That's for sure," said Seltzer. "I thought we did well. The team prepared well and were ready. We defended and blocked well."

The first set of the match was forced to extra points because of a wonderful individual effort from last year's PacWest Conference Player of the Year, NDNU's Bianca Alvarez. Alvarez had seven kills, a handful of digs, a block, an ace and an assist.

Outside of her performance Biola really dominated the first set with some gaudy offensive numbers. The team hit .357 and posted 21 kills to account for almost all of their 27 points. The Eagles gave away a few points on some serve and block errors, which allowed the Argos to get back in it, but ultimately a string of kills by Sabrina Winslow and Karly Dantuma secured that frame in favor of BU. Winslow had six kills in the set and Brooke Watts ended with five kills and no errors, hitting almost .800.

Set two was something different entirely. Biola came storming out of the gates to take a commanding 5-0 lead, only to give up five of the next six rallies and sit there with a 6-5 game on their hands. However, the team turned it around and won 11 of the next 13 to increase that lead to double-digits. From that point on it was smooth sailing to lock down the 25-14 set victory.

The Eagles relied a lot less on their own offense in this frame, collecting only 10 total kills. That number was only at six with about six points left to clinch too as NDNU kept hitting into the Eagles' block and hitting it out of bounds. The Argos had nine bad attacks in the second set.

"The key for us was defending and blocking them," said Seltzer. "It was about getting them to tip and roll as often as possible and really not a whole lot of those worked out for them."

Sami Hover was another huge reason the Eagles were able to stake claim on a two sets to none advantage. The freshman defensive specialist had 14 digs through the first two frames.

Set three was a blip on the radar as the roles got reversed from the previous go around. The Argos managed a 25-15 set win off the power of 17 kills to just two errors. The Eagles were hoping for a third-straight conference sweep, but instead suffered their first set loss to NDNU since Oct. 13, 1989.

Set four was a close one late as the Argos pushed to get as close as two points back from the Eagles twice after Biola reached the 20-point mark. However, Sierra Bauder fell into her comfort zone late in the set and had kills that earned points 22, 24 and 25 for Biola as they locked the match away.

Bauder had not been set a frequently as normal throughout the match as BU was primarily working from the outsides, but she made it work late to end up with a solid score line with eight kills and a part in six blocks.

Winslow ended once again as the team's leading attacker. She had 16 kills, hit .115 and added a pair of blocks. Alvarez was the match's overall kills leader with 26 on 67 swings.

Karly Dantuma was up over double-digits once again with 12 kills. What was most impressive was again how efficient she was, hitting up over .300 and committing only two attack errors all match. She had three kills and a block as another key player in the integral fourth set.

Brinley Beresford played the entire match at setter and was sharp throughout. She recorded a double-double with 40 assists and 11 digs. Tess Van Grouw was next on the assist list, ending with five assists to go with her 18 digs and team-high three service aces.

The Eagles improve to 14-5 overall (8-5 PacWest) and the hosting Argos fall to 11-9 (6-6 PacWest). It was Biola's sixth consecutive win and the Argos' fourth loss in the last six tries.

With the victory Biola Volleyball ensured it will be inside of the top-5 in the PacWest Conference on the established deadline of Oct. 22. This means the Eagles will be eligible to compete in the National Christian College Athletic Association postseason. The first match will be a regional playoff hosted at Chase Gymnasium on Oct. 31.

Before that match Biola has its toughest test of the season coming up this Thursday. The team heads to Riverside to face No. 6 California Baptist (19-0, 11-0 PacWest). The Lancers have lost just three sets all season, earning 16 sweeps. However, they did drop one set today up at Fresno Pacific.

 
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