St. Thomas Box Score | UW-Oshkosh Box Score

OSHKOSH, Wis. - It's been said that "all good things must come to an end." And so it was with Bethel's three-match winning streak. By virtue of winning the first two games of the Titan Tussle, the Royals earned the privilege of playing two top-10 nationally ranked teams in St. Thomas (#9) and the #1 team, hosts UW-Oshkosh. Unfortunately, there were no upsets today, as Bethel was defeated 3-1 (25-16, 21-25, 25-21, 25-12) and 3-0 (25-23, 25-16, 25-20), respectively.

Against conference opponent St. Thomas, Kelly Otto (Sr., Plymouth, Minn.) led the Royals with 14 points on 12 kills and four block assists. Brianna Falck (Jr., DeForest, Wis.) was Bethel's next highest scorer with 10 points on nine kills and a pair of block assists. St. Thomas did a good job of containing Nicole Wriedt (So., Pewaukee, Wis.), who had just four kills in 22 attacks. Both Betsy Naatjes (Jr., Sioux Falls, S.D.) and Kate Smith (So., Arden Hills, Minn.) split setter duties to help mix up the offensive attack.

In the second game of the afternoon, the Royals took on previously undefeated UW-Oshkosh and though they played valiantly, the #1 team in the nation prevailed in straight sets. Otto was the only Royal to earn double digit points as she had 11 on nine kills, a service ace, and two block assists. However, it was Amy Werner (Fr., Three Lakes, Wis.) that earned a slot on the All-Tournament Team for her steady play. Werner averaged better than 11 points per match during the two-day tournament, and had 13 block assists in addition to two solo blocks, not to mention a remarkable .307 hitting percentage.

The losses set Bethel back to 10-15 overall, with just four matches remaining. The Royals are scheduled to return to Arden Hills for their final two home matches of the season on Friday, Oct. 23, against Augsburg, and then on Saturday the 24th against Saint Mary's.