ROSEVILLE, Minn.—The Bethel University volleyball team improved to 6-0 on the season after Wednesday night's 3-0 victory at the University of Northwestern-St. Paul. The Royals, who were receiving votes in the latest AVCA Top 25 poll, outlasted the Eagles, another team receiving votes, in a crazy first set before cruising to a win in games two and three.
 
After trailing 0-2 in the opener, BU went on a 12-1 run that silenced the home crowd.  The purple pack wouldn't be silenced for long; however, as UNW came storming back with a 21-9 run that put the Eagles ahead 24-21. A pair of timely blocks by Tegan LaBerge helped the Royals even the score at 24-24, but it took numerous gut-wrenching volleys for Bethel to come out victorious in the end 30-28. The Royals escaped five set points down the stretch.
 
The second and third sets weren't near as tight, as Bethel downed the Eagles 24-15 in the second and 25-19 in the third. The Royals hit .197 as a team throughout the match, but finished over .300 in both the second and third frames. Bethel posted 38 kills, five aces, 10 blocks, 35 assists, and 59 digs.
 
Leading the offense was Kristin Stern and Carlee Hoppe, who each finished the match with 11 kills, while Tina Hoppe added nine. Tina Hoppe, Stern, and Tegan LaBerge recorded five block assists, while Carlee Hoppe led the back row with 14 digs. Kali Johnson and Mikayla Morrow also logged double-digit digs with 12 and 11, respectively. Morrow and Katie Lubben tallied 14 and 18 assists for the Royals.
 
Bethel returns to the hardwood this weekend when they travel to UW-Stevens Point for a very competitive two-day, four-match tournament. Not only are the hosting Pointers ranked No. 6 in the country, but John Carroll University—a team they play Saturday afternoon—defeated Pacific Lutheran, who was ranked among the Top 25 in the preseason poll.