BGSU volleyball played their Brown vs. Orange scrimmage on Saturday, April 11, an opportunity for the team to compete against each other in match-simulating play and for fans and community members to spectate.
The match saw contributions from two non-rostered players. Dominic Bennett was the brown team’s setter and is the Falcons Director of Operations. Ian Carter rotated in at middle blocker for Brown, a practice player for the Falcons. The roster was divided into two teams.
Brown– Marin Dunaway (OH) | Avery Hobson (OH) | Sydnie Hernandez (L) | Marija Tabak (OH/RS) | Jessica Andrews (MB) | Edyta Waclawczyk (OH) | Kate Eigner (DS/DNP) | Amanda Otten (S/DNP)
Orange– Molly Beatty (S) | Cecily Waynar (MB) | Helen Wilford (MB) | Ava Buddelmeyer (OH) | Avery Anders (L) | Karli Molnau (RS) | Anastasija Bozic (OH) | Alivia Brown (DS) | Kendall Williams (MB/DNP)
Buddelmeyer gained Orange a seven-point lead in the first set, the team adding on and winning by 10 points. Brown responded, leading 21-19 midway through the second set, holding on and winning by two.
Brown never trailed at any stoppages of play after the second set, winning the match by a 3-1 final. Stats were not officially recorded during the scrimmage.
Falcon Four Takeaways;
Molly Beatty
One of the struggles for BGSU Volleyball in 2025 was injuries, the main one being Otten’s absence from six crucial conference games due to a knee injury. She did not play in this scrimmage, Bennett stepping in to set for the brown side.
Beatty, a transfer addition from Central Michigan, set the entire match for Orange. She will be a sophomore in the 2026 season and is the only setter on the Falcon roster outside of Otten.
From Indianapolis, Indiana, she offered less of an all-around presence than Otten, who is a dynamic blocker, defender, and server, in addition to her pure setting ability. In the scrimmage, Beatty seemed to equal Otten at least in this pure setting ability.
She rarely missed her sets, and when she did, it wasn’t by much. Beatty displayed a great ability to set with her feet moving, especially when out of system, a good characteristic for a Falcon team that sometimes has first-touch troubles.
Amidst Otten’s injury last season, the Falcons used three substitutes: setter Anna Sitek, defensive specialist Belle Laube, and right-side Lauryn Hovey. All three of those players will not be on the 2026 roster, and Beatty provides a better backup than Sitek and a more settling option than out-of-position players.
Assuming, of course, Beatty is a backup and doesn’t earn the starting job before game one.
Karli Molnau
Finishing her career in 2025, Hovey was arguably one of the best and most talented BGSU volleyball players in the 21st century. She anchored the right side for the Falcons for three complete seasons, earning a multitude of MAC and AVCA accolades in her four-year career.
People who became Falcon volleyball fans in the last four years can’t imagine a team without Hovey. Heading into the offseason, the biggest question mark was the right side.
One of two transfer additions, Molnau played her freshman season at Loyola Chicago, where she was an A-10 All-Rookie selection as a pin hitter. She played against Bowling Green on Sept. 13, 2025, scoring 13 kills, four digs, and three total blocks.
Playing for Orange in the inter-team scrimmage, the next-year sophomore did not leave the floor, playing all six rotations and swinging almost exclusively from the right side. She was the only opposite hitter in the match who stayed in her position and did not sub.
Molnau displayed a live arm and the ability to use it on a variety of shots. She was not set as much as some other hitters and thus didn’t have a chance to dominate play. However, her clear talent ensured she could take over games frequently.
It seems like she can be penciled in the starting lineup as a good substitute for Hovey. But will she become the X Factor BG needs for the coming season?
Ava Buddelmeyer
Seven different pin hitters played for the Falcons last season, Buddelmeyer one of only two to play less than 30 sets. She started her freshman season with four straight matches of 18+ attacks in September, followed by only taking 36 swings the rest of the season.
The Findlay, Ohio, native showed promise in those four impact games, a substitute spark plug against No. 15 Kansas, earning her a start and a season-high 12 kills the game following against No. 17 Purdue. She lost playing time due to efficiency, hitting .050 percentage on the season, and -.166 hitting percentage after the first four games.
She was maybe the best overall player in the spring scrimmage. Playing for the orange team, Buddelmeyer was undoubtedly the best offensive player on either side.
More importantly, she was insanely efficient. No stats were published, but it felt as if she scored the vast majority of her attacks and did so with unflinching confidence.
Buddelmeyer was one of the best athletes on the floor and certainly one of the outside hitters. She stands at 5 feet 11 inches with quick feet, a fast arm, and has, last season and in the match, shown she can make a big play when needed.
It was Hobson and Waclawczyk who were the premier outside hitters for BG last season. Both return, but Buddelmeyer can create another good option for head coach Alex DelPiombo in bolstering offense and athleticism on the floor.
Style Differences
The division of the roster into the two teams made for an interesting style collision, and an interesting choice by the staff on how to divide the hitters. Brown beat Orange with theirs, but the styles certainly had their successes and their pitfalls.
The brown team was incredibly physical, the hallmark of DelPiombo recruits and of the team’s identity the last few years. Recent names like Andrews, Mia Tyler, Alexis Mettille, and Kat Mandly are examples of physical athletes; large, big swingers, stout blockers, and almost exclusively front-row players.
This is especially true in a few key players for the brown team, Hobson, Waclawczyk, and Tabak. They are big bodies, have maybe the best three arms on the floor, and didn’t really make many offensive or blocking mistakes.
On the other side of the net was a style more foreign to BG, players like Molnau, Buddelmeyer, and Bozic. They are far more versatile, all six-rotation players who can affect every aspect of the game positively.
This is a lighter kind of athlete and still a great one. They won’t stun you with crushing blows that more physical athletes do, but make up for it by contributing to every aspect of the game. They also have the benefit of being able to save mistakes and be better playmakers.
Brown’s style won the scrimmage simply, mostly because they made fewer mistakes. Physicality has been successful for the Falcons in recent years, the program winning a MAC tournament, reaching another, winning a MAC regular season, and reaching the NIVC championship match with a physical brand of volleyball.
But with Molnau likely going to be an every-set player and Buddelmeyer poised for a breakout, could BG see a change in their athletic style?
