NORTHFIELD, Minn. — The Carleton volleyball team dropped a 3-1 decision (13-25, 25-22, 20-25, 13-25) to league-leading Bethel University in Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) action on Wednesday evening at West Gym
. With the loss, the Knights move to 11-7 overall and 2-2 in conference play, while the Royals improve to 16-4 overall and 3-0 in MIAC competition.
Bethel set the tone in the opening frame. The Royals jumped out to an early 9-4 lead and never looked back, leading by as many as 13 points (24-11) in the first set. Bethel hit .303 in the set and closed out a 25-13 victory to take a 1-0 lead in the match.
Carleton responded with resilience in set two, battling through nine ties and six lead changes in a highly competitive frame. Trailing 18-17, the Knights pulled even on a kill by junior Abby Kvart. Another Kvart kill gave the home team a lead it would not relinquish the rest of the way. Â Facing four set points at 24-20, the Knights withstood a brief three-point push from Bethel before first-year Alexis Ormsby put away a set from senior Megan Smith to clinch the 25-22 set win and even the match.
The third set went Bethel's way early, with the Royals surging out to a 5-1 lead, but remained tight thanks to a 4-1 response from the Maize and Blue. The visitors gained separation behind a 3-0 run and later a 4-1 spurt to take a 21-15 lead. Carleton cut the deficit to 21-18 following back-to-back kills from junior Ellewyn Swafford and another from Ormsby, but Bethel halted the run and hit .464 in the frame to claim the set 25-20.
The Royals carried that momentum into the fourth and final set. Trailing 4-3 in the early going, Bethel put together a 9-2 run to push the margin to 12-6 in favor of the visitors. Carleton responded with a 5-1 run that cut the gap to just two (13-11), but Bethel's Peyton Howie tacked on a pair of aces during a four-point spurt to stretch the Royals' lead back to four (17-11). The four-point stretch proved to be part of a larger 12-2 run that closed the set, which secured the 25-13 victory and wrapped up the 3-1 match decision.
Senior Rachel Bingham led the Knights' attack with a team-high 14 kills to go along with 11 digs for her sixth double-double of the season, while Alexis Ormsby added 12 kills with a pair of service aces. Ellewyn Swafford also hit double figures with 11 kills and contributed two service aces. Megan Smith orchestrated the offense with 41 assists and chipped in seven digs. Defensively, junior libero Madeleine Dimitre anchored the backline with a match-high 20 digs.
Up Next for the Knights
Carleton will be back in action on Homecoming Saturday this weekend. The Knights host the College of St. Scholastica at West Gym for a 6pm first serve.
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