VOLLEYBALL: Beavers return home, tangle with No. 8 SMSU in 3-1 loss
Sep. 18—BEMIDJI — Bemidji State volleyball fans waited nearly two full years to root for their Beavers in person again, and Friday night's home opener at the BSU Gymnasium was reason enough to celebrate.
Fans in green got even louder in the third set, a thrilling victory for the home team, but No. 8 Southwest Minnesota State ultimately played spoiler with a 3-1 win (25-12, 25-16, 24-26, 25-18).
"It's always really fun to get out here and play in front of home fans," senior outside hitter Anna Averkamp said. "I love the home opener. It's my favorite and it's sad that that's my last one, but it just felt great to be back."
The highlight of the match undoubtedly came in the third set, when BSU shot out to a 9-3 lead and later closed on a 5-1 run to prevail 26-24. Not only did the gym come alive with energy, but the Beavers proved that they could hang with a team like SMSU (9-0, 1-0 NSIC).
"That's a message we send to (our team) all the time: Our league is tough, but we're capable of a lot," Bemidji State head coach Kevin Ulmer said. "We can hold ourselves to that high standard and play clean. Because that was the set we actually outhit them. We held them to an .086 efficiency and we hit .147 — which still isn't good enough — but from the perspective of being able to control a team that's that good, it was fun to see that."
The Mustangs brought the Beavers back down to earth in the fourth set, however, resuming the kind of night that had played out in the first two sets. While BSU's defense showed flashes of strength and stubbornness, the Southwest Minnesota State offense was unwavering and unrelenting.
SMSU led 14-4 in the first set and cruised to a 25-12 win, using its attack to wear down BSU until holes emerged in the defense. The second set wasn't much different, as the Mustangs jumped up 9-3 and never let the lead slip back under five.
"I definitely expected them to come out firing," Ulmer said. I didn't expect us to be so blank from the beginning, to be honest. It was surprising."
Averkamp swung momentum her way early in the third set. She took over with a big block sandwiched between two even bigger kills, spurring on an 8-0 Bemidji State run.
"It is such a great feeling. It's the best feeling ever," said Averkamp, who finished with a team-high 11 kills. "I love that moment. ... It felt good to have that energy and that atmosphere in the gym."
Meeghen Dahlager had a clutch block in the closing run, and soon after Lauren Justesen made an integral diving dig on the set-clinching point. Justesen's save reached Emily Wade, who then assisted Averkamp on the final kill that gave BSU something positive to build on.
Yet Southwest Minnesota State had no interest in flirting with a fifth set, putting the match away handily in the fourth. So the Beavers walked out knowing the kind of team they can compete with, but largely witnessing that level of play at their own expense.
"We knew that they were going to be a fast-paced team. That's how a lot of teams in our conference are," Averkamp said. "It's just getting young girls used to the fast pace that everyone likes to play at. It's definitely tough, but Southwest, they're a good team. Kudos to them. They did what they needed to do."
Now 0-9, Bemidji State stays home for a 1 p.m. matchup against Sioux Falls on Saturday, Sept. 18, at the BSU Gymnasium.
