INDIANOLA, IOWA.—For the first time since 2021, the Bethel University volleyball team begins their season 2-0 following a 3-1 victory over Central College, and a 3-0 decision at Simpson in Indianola, Iowa on Tuesday evening.
The Royals begin their 2026 season with a 2-0 record.
Bethel 3, Central College 1 (17-25, 25-23, 25-15, 25-23)
Both teams were neck-and-neck on the attack as Bethel had the edge by a .197 - .177 margin. The Royals turned things around after a first set that saw them with just seven kills, eight errors, and a .003 hitting percentage en route to a 25-17 loss to the Dutch. The final three sets resulted in a .281 attack percentage that consisted of 32 kills and just seven errors for Bethel, which helped them secure 25-23, 25-15, 25-23 victories.
Peyton Howie finished with 15 kills and a .316 attack percentage on just three errors, four aces, and four blocks. Chiara Houser led the way with five blocks. Leading the attack efficiency was Shea Scherber, who hit .318, had 10 kills and just three errors over 22 attacks. Grace Therrien had a team-leading 12 digs and four aces, while Mattie Petersen also notched four aces. Ellie Van Namen and Sophia Rubio contributed 18 and 10 assists, respectively.
Sophie Folkerts paced Central with 12 kills, followed by 11 from Kaitlyn Mimm.
Bethel 3, Simpson 0 (25-17, 25-19, 25-17)
The Royals finished the match with a .204 hitting clip, which included a .241 mark in a first set that resulted in just three attack errors. Simpson accumulated 24 attack errors in the contest, while Bethel managed to cut that in half with 12 in the match.
Scherber was efficient once again with nine kills and a .375 hitting clip on just 16 attempts, along with two assisted blocks. Peyton Howie also turned in another efficient performance with eight kills and 25 attacks on just one error. Hannah Penke also had eight kills and added 10 digs in the match. Grace Therrien paced the Royals with 15 digs.
Van Namen had 15 assists, followed by 13 from Rubio.
Bethel will compete in the Northwestern (Minnesota.) Kathryne Pals Legacy Invitational on Friday, September 4. They'll face Lawrence at 3:30 p.m., and Northwestern (Minn.) at 6 p.m.
