ALLENDALE, Mich. – The Saginaw Valley State University volleyball program wrapped up their four matches at the 2024 Grand Rapids Downtown Classic with losses against Bemidji State and Northwood. The Cardinals (2-5) lost 3-1 to the Beavers (5-3) and 3-0 to the Timberwolves (6-1).

Match One: Bemidji State 3, Saginaw Valley 1 (25-15, 28-26, 25-19, 25-18)

SVSU was led by Sarah Veale and Jackie Scheiber who both posted double doubles. Veale had 15 kills and 16 digs while Scheiber had 37 assists and 11 digs. Ava Decker had 10 kills on 19 total attacks for a hitting percentage of .526. Elizabeth Bruschuk led with 21 digs and Sedona Coon was third on the team with 13.

Set One: Bemidji State started hot using a 4-0 run to take a 10-3 lead. The Cardinals had kills by Veale and Decker in a 4-0 run to bring it within four points but a 9-3 run for the Beavers followed to close out the first set.

Set Two: BSU took an early lead again in set two before The Cardinals knotted the set at 9-9. A 4-1 run with kills by Decker, Coon, and Scheiber put SVSU ahead by two. They pushed for their first big lead with a 7-1 run taking advantage of some attacking errors and three straight kills to make it 21-17. A 4-0 run for Bemidji State tied the set 24-24 before Veale and Ella Lochbiler got back-to-back kills for SVSU to win the set 28-26.

Set Three: After a 4-4 tie to start the third set, BSU got ahead with a 5-1 run to make it 10-5. Saginaw Valley brought it within a pair with kills by Veale and Emily Foster but the Beavers rallied with a 6-2 run to make it 17-11. Both teams traded 3-0 runs before a service error finished the set and gave Bemidji State a 2-1 advantage.

Set Four: The push back came from the Cardinals jumping out to an early lead. A 3-1 and 3-0 run put SVSU ahead 7-5. The Beavers responded with a 7-0 run to capture a 16-9 lead. SVSU strung a 6-0 run and a 3-1 run together with Veale and Decker both getting multiple kills to make it 18-18 but a 7-0 run wrapped up the set and match for BSU.

Match Two: Northwood 3, Saginaw Valley 0 (25-14, 25-21, 25-17)

The Cardinals struggled in their fourth match in two days as they hit -0.021 as a team with 22 kills and 24 errors. Coon led with seven kills with Veale following with six. Veale also had 13 digs. Scheiber ran the offense with 18 assists in the second match.

Set One: Northwood jumped out to an 8-2 lead and kept their foot on the gas. The Cardinals used two 2-0 runs to bring the set back within six but a 6-1 run extended the lead to 22-11 for the Timberwolves. Both teams ended with 2-0 runs as Northwood took the 1-0 set lead.

Set Two: A NU 5-0 run started the second set. SVSU answered with a 7-1 run to take the lead 10-8 as they got two kills from Coon, one from Veale, and two aces from Bruschuk for her three on the day. Saginaw Valley pushed their lead to five points as they were up 18-13 before an 8-2 run put Northwood ahead 21-20. After a point for the Cardinals tied it, a 4-0 run ended the set for Northwood.

Set Three: Both teams traded 3-0 runs as SVSU had back-to-back kills from Coon to tie the set 4-4. A 5-0 run for Northwood gave them the advantage as Saginaw Valley responded with a 5-1 run to make it 10-9 NU. The battle continued as two attack errors for Northwood tied the set at 14-14. However, a 6-1 run and a 5-1 run for Northwood vaulted them ahead and won the third and final set.

Up Next: Wrapping up the weekend, Saginaw Valley volleyball has a few days off before heading to Lake Superior State on Thursday, September 19. The first Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) match of the season is set for 5:30 PM from Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.