Vikings roll past Beloit in straight sets

BELOIT, Wis. — The Lawrence University volleyball team got a balanced attack and great defense en route to a 3-0 Midwest Conference victory at Beloit College on Tuesday.

Lawrence defeated the Bucs 25-14, 25-23, 25-13.

Arianna Neumeyer paced the Vikings with (8-12, 3-2 MWC) with nine kills. Rachel Barthel added eight kills, and Rachael Wuensch had seven for Lawrence.

Sydney Nelson led the Vikings with 17 assists, and Lauren Ray had 15. Cyra Bammer picked up 18 digs as the Lawrence defense held Beloit (9-10, 0-4) to a .010 hitting percentage.

In the opening set, the Vikings jumped out to a 12-4 lead, and Beloit never got closer than that the rest of the way.

In the second set, the Bucs grabbed an early 7-1 advantage, but the Vikings chipped away at the lead. The Vikings trailed 18-15 before scoring three straight points, capped by Ray’s ace, to tie it at 18-18.

After an attack error by Lawrence, the Vikings scored four straight points, including two kills by Barthel, to take a 22-19 lead. Beloit cut the lead to 24-23, but a kill by Barthel closed out the set for Lawrence.

In the final set, Lawrence broke a 5-5 tie by going on a 6-1 run for an 11-6 lead. The Vikings led 15-10 and closed out the set and match on a 10-3 run. Bryttany Dove finished off the Bucs with a pair of service aces for the final two points.

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