Women's Volleyball

Bowling Green Sends Wright State Packing; Heads to Great 8 of NIVC

2024 National Invitational Volleyball Championship
Bowling Green, Ohio | The Stroh Center
Wednesday, Dec. 4
Round 1: Bowling Green 3, Binghamton 1
Thursday, Dec. 5
Round 2: Bowling Green 3. Wright State, 1
Monday-Thursday, Dec. 9-12
Great 8: TBD
 
Recap courtesy of Bowling Green's Athletic Communications Department

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University volleyball team topped the Wright State Raiders Thursday night (Dec. 5) at the Stroh Center in four sets. The Falcons started strong, hitting .581 in the first set, but Wright State battled back in the second to knot the match up at 1-1. In the third set, the two teams went back-and-forth, but an Isabelle Laube ace sealed the set in favor of the Falcons. Bowling Green was able to roll the momentum into the fourth set, claiming the 3-1 final. 

The Falcons have now won 23 matches this year, the most during Coach Tomic's time at BGSU. This also marks the first time under Tomic the Falcons have recorded multiple postseason wins in the same and just the third time in program history. Bowling Green will advance to the Great 8 of the NIVC with the opponent, date and location to be determined. 

Falcon Stat Leaders 
Kills: Lauryn Hovey (16)
Assists: Amanda Otten (41)
Digs: Sydnie Hernandez (15)
Aces: Avery Anders, Sydnie Hernandez, Isabelle Laube, Amanda Otten (1)
Blocks: Alexis Mettille, Mia Tyler (4)

Falcon Stat Facts
  • The win marks the first time during Coach Tomic's tenure that the Falcons have recorded multiple postseason wins in the same season and the third time in program history. Bowling Green recorded two NIVC wins in 1993 and five in 1992 when they finished as the NIVC Runner-Up. The Falcons are now 9-6 all-time in the NIVC.
  • The win marked the 23rd for the Falcons this season, now with a 23-9 record. The win total is the most for Bowling Green during Coach Tomic's time at the helm of BGVB.
  • Jessica Andrews tallied one of BGSU's three solo blocks in the match, her 21st of the season. The total moves Andrews up to a tie for seventh on the Rally Scoring Era list for single-season solo blocks, tied with Katie Kidwell's 2019 season and Melissa Mohr's 2004 season. Andrews is now one shy of her career-high, set in 2022 with 22 that sits at sixth on the list. 
  • Andrews totaled two blocks on the night, now with 144 this season. The 144 blocks moves her up to fourth on the Rally Scoring Era list for single-season total blocks, passing Kendra Halm's 2006 season.
  • Alexis Mettille added four block assists in the match as well, giving her 131 total blocks this season. The mark ties Mettille for 10th on the Rally Scoring list for single-season total blocks with Halm's 2008 campaign. 
  • Sydnie Hernandez had another career night, serving as the libero for the second straight match. Hernandez led the team in digs with a career-high 15 and added a career-high seven assists, which finished second on the team. 
  • Amanda Otten filled the stat sheet and nearly logged a double-double. She concluded the match with a team-high 41 assists, nine digs, four kills and an ace while setting the BGSU attack to a .316 hitting percentage. 
  • Lauryn Hovey led the Falcon attack with 16 kills while maintaining a .333 hitting percentage. Hovey added seven digs in addition to a block and an assist. 
  • Mia Tyler tallied 14 kills for BGSU, second on the team, while hitting .400 for the Falcons. She added a solo block and three block assists, tying for the team lead in blocks.
  • Isabelle Laube and Avery Anders produced similar stat lines for the Falcons, each logging four digs, two assists and an ace.  
  • Bowling Green has now topped Wright State twice this season, accounting for two of Wright State's seven total losses. Both of BGSU's wins were in four sets, winning 3-1 on Sept. 8 as well. The Falcons have now won the last four meetings with the Raiders. 

Up Next
The Falcons will advance to the Great 8 of the NIVC. BGSU will play the winner of tomorrow's (Dec. 6) match between DePaul and Omaha scheduled for 8 p.m. EST. The location, date and time of Bowling Green's next match will be determined upon the opponent.