It took five sets and a monstrous reverse sweep, but Bowling Green volleyball (25-9, 16-2 MAC) defeated St. Johns to advance to the NIVC Championship match for the first time since 1992.
Thirty-four games later, it all comes down to this—one match to become NIVC champions.
Bowling Green has had a tough end to their MAC season, the Orange and Brown falling at home to Western Michigan in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Tournament semi-final before earning their spot in the NIVC.
“It’s not easy to bounce back emotionally after a loss like what we suffered against Western Michigan, but winning championships is not easy, championship culture is not easy, champions are very resilient to failure,” BGSU’s head coach Danijela Tomic said Monday before the match.
The Falcons dominated in the earlier rounds of the NIVC, beating Binghamton and Wright State in four sets each at the Stroh Center. Their first road game fell similarly as they beat DePaul in four sets in Chicago, Illinois, before having the tough reverse sweep in against St. Johns.
The final opponent of the season for BGSU will be their hardest test so far, Arizona (23-9, 9-9 BIG 12), with the Wildcats getting the Falcons on home court at the McKale Center in Tucson, Arizona, on Tuesday, Dec. 17.
Falcon Media Sports Network’s Ben Corak will have the call starting at 7:45 p.m. for pregame and 8 p.m. for first serve on WBGU 88.1 FM.
Matchup History
Yet another rare matchup is brewing for the Orange and Brown, who have only faced off against Arizona one time in program history. In 1988, the Wildcats dispatched the Falcons rather easily in a 3-0 sweep on neutral court.
Arizona does have the home-court advantage this time, which means that BGSU volleyball will play a match in the state of Arizona for the first time in program history.
Fifth-year senior transfer Jordan Newblatt is the only Falcon to have played Arizona in her career. On Oct. 27, 2021, Newblatt played in her first match at Marist College (aside from the COVID season) against the Wildcats in the McKale Center, meaning the senior outside hitter will essentially begin and end her career with a match against Arizona in the Grand Canyon state.
Scouting Bowling Green
The reigning MAC Coach of the Year, Tomic, has led her team to 25 wins, which is the most in one season during her time at BGSU.
“To have this opportunity doesn’t happen often. Generations of Falcons, every player who came before, left a piece of themselves in this 2024 team, which brought us here,” Tomic said.
Bowling Green has struggled against power four teams so far this season, losing all four matches they played, going 1-12 in total sets.
Blocking has been a key for BG throughout the season as the Falcons rank 31st in the nation in blocks, averaging 2.57 per set, with the Orange and Brown ranking tenth in the nation in total blocks (328.5).
The offense for BGSU has usually spread around, but one piece that BG will need is the serve game, which is 17th in the nation currently in aces (221). While they have a high service error count, the Falcons serve aggressively, pairing their errors with a high number of aces.
Junior opposite hitter Lauryn Hovey has a chance to tie or break her record for single-season aces in the Rally Scoring Era, needing three to tie (59) and four to break (60) in one game.
Freshman defensive specialist Sydnie Hernandez is also on the record book with 39 aces in her first season, tied for sixth in the Rally Scoring Era with only two needed to vault to fourth.
As a team, BG is on pace to break the single-season Rally Scoring Era record for aces in a season, looking to pass last year’s record of 229 with nine aces in the game against Arizona.
Scouting Arizona
The Wildcats finished seventh in the BIG 12 this season, starting conference play 2-9 before tightening up to go on a 7-0 run that was good enough to earn them a spot in the NIVC.
Arizona will be a good match for the Falcons in the fact that the Wildcats topped the Big 12 in opponent blocks allowed with only 1.64 allowed per set.
This was also partially due to the blazing hot offense that Arizona possesses, which ranked fourth in the BIG 12 in kills per set (13.92) and points per set (17.53).
In terms of common opponents, the Wildcats share just one with the Falcons, which was Cincinnati, who Arizona defeated 3-1, while the Orange and Brown fell 3-0.
Falcon Four Players to Watch
Jessica Andrews (Bowling Green #7)
The junior middle blocker has been everything and more for Bowling Green upfront as the All-MAC Second Team player has accounted for 155 blocks this season, which is a program record for the most in a single season during the Rally Scoring Era.
The Guelph, Ontario native will be needed against Arizona’s strong attack as she has been great this NIVC with 31 kills, only five errors and 18 total blocks.
Lauryn Hovey (Bowling Green #14)
The reigning MAC Player of the Year has been the heart and soul of the Falcon offense, leading the team in kills with 432, making her one of the most reliable pieces to BG’s attack.
Sixty-one kills, six aces, 26 digs, and 17 total blocks is her stat line in the NIVC, with her 76 points leading any Falcon in the tournament.
The junior outside hitter is one of the biggest offensive contributors for the Wildcats, as a Big 12 All-Pacific First Team Honorable Mention in 2024.
The Gilbert, Arizona native averages 3.82 kills per set, which puts her fourth in the BIG 12, alongside her 428 total kills, which is third. On the season, she has a .252 hitting percentage, 27 service aces, 273 digs, and 57.0 total blocks on 112 sets.
One of the biggest keys for Arizona is to set the offense and no one has been better in 2024 than the BIG 12’s Pacific Region Freshman of the Year, whose 10.46 assists per set was good enough to put her second in the conference in assists.
The New Bern, North Carolina native has tallied 101 assists, 27 digs, eight kills, and three total blocks in only three Arizona matches in the NIVC.
