Emma Tucker | Sports Reporter 

This past weekend, Bowling Green State University’s Women Volleyball team traveled to play Pittsburgh, Towson and American in the Panther Challenge. The falcons lost the first two matches against Pittsburgh and Towson, but swept American University to end the weekend. 

Falcons vs Tigers

On Friday afternoon, the Falcons dropped the first match of the Panther Challenge to the undefeated Towson Tigers in three sets; (25-15), (25-23) and (29-27).

First Set: 25-15

In the first set, setter Jaden Walz opened with an ace and shared three more with senior Julia Walz, later in the match. Throughout the set, Towson had aggressive offense; leaving the set with 18 kills and 18 assists. Mid-set, the Falcons began to gain traction on the Tigers, but couldn’t close the gap. With a hitting percentage difference of 26.7%, Towson took an offensive advantage in this set and won 25-15.

Second Set: 25-23

The second set began with consecutive kills between Townson middle blocker Jessica Andrews and Victoria Barrett. With a final score of 25-23, the Falcons matched the number of kills Towson, each had 11. Bowling Green fell short of taking the set within a few points. The score between the Falcons and Tigers remained at a close margin for a majority of the set and was primarily dependent on the Falcon’s defense. 

Third Set: 29-27

The final set began with multiple kills from outside hitters Kat Mandly and Mia Tyler, five and four kills respectively. The Falcons were the offensive leader of this set, but attack errors from the Falcons gave the Tigers the upper hand. With Mandly and Hovey leading the team with nine kills each and junior Jaden Walz leading the Falcons with 28 assists; Bowling Green’s offense surpassed Towson. With the set going longer than the regular 25-point play, the Falcons matched and kept within one point of Towson, for seven points before losing 29-27.

Falcons vs Panthers

Following the Towson match, the Falcons lost a three-set match to the seventh-ranked team, Pittsburgh (25-17), (25-16) and (25-19). 

First Set: 25-17

The match between the Falcons and Panthers began with a strong offensive set from Pittsburgh. Ending with a score of 25-17, Pittsburgh overpowered Bowling Green defense with 15 kills, two aces and a hitting percentage of 34%. With a team kill total of 12, Pittsburgh freshman Lauryn Hovey led the team with six kills in this set. On the defensive side, the Falcons had 36 attack attempts and seven attack errors. This margin of error gave Pittsburgh the edge that was needed to take the set. 

Second Set: 25-16

The second set began with close scores between the Panthers and Falcons as BGSU took a 5-4 lead. Throughout the set, Pittsburgh’s offense pressured the Falcons as the score grew to 19-10, in favor of the Panthers. The Falcon offense continued to close the gap with five combined kills, by outside hitters Katelyn Meyer and Mia Tyler. The set came to a close as Pittsburgh’s Serena Gray made the final kill to solidify the final score of 25-16. 

Third Set: 25-19

The final set showcased the strong Falcon offense and defense, with 12 kills being shared between six players. Jaden Walz had ten of her 24 assists in this set alone. While the Falcons kept the score close, the Panthers began to pull away, mid-set. This lead went the distance and finished the set with a score of 25-19. Some leaders in the match were the four blocks by junior Alexis Mettille, and digs were led by senior Yelianiz Torres with ten for the match.

Falcons vs Eagles

On Saturday afternoon, Sept. 10, the Falcons grabbed their first sweep of the season by taking down American in three sets at (25-21), (25-14) and (25-17). 

First Set:

The first set began with four points from the Eagles but was quickly matched, then topped by the Falcons with the score being 7-4. Following multiple attack errors and kills from both sides, the score soon evened out to 12-11. Gaining the lead, the Falcons won four straight points and the score wouldn’t be close again until the game was 19-18. Bowling Green took charge until the end of the set, scoring five straight points and securing the set. With a final score of 25-21, sophomore Kat Mandly led the set with four kills and junior Jaden Walz had seven assists.

Second Set: 

The Falcons and Eagles spent the beginning of the second set trading points until the Falcons had a four-point run, making the score 6-4. The Falcons continued to slowly increase their lead, making the set an impressive 22-11. With an ace from senior Yelianiz Torres and two final kills from outside hitter Hannah Best, the Falcons won their second set with a score of 25-14.

Third set:

The final set opened with a run of four straight points from the Falcons, giving them a 6-1 lead. Bowling Green continued to have the lead, only allowing American to get within three points for the rest of the match (12-9). The Falcons slowly increased the lead until they had another four-point run, making the score 20-11. From there, Bowling Green had four kills to cement a win with a score of 25-17. After five aces, 47 kills and 41 assists, the Falcons took the win from the Eagles. Some overall leaders throughout the match were, Kat Mandly with 13 kills, Jaden Walz with 31 assists, and Yelianiz Torres with 17 digs. 

Next for Bowling Green, the Falcons take on Mississippi State and Michigan for the Michigan Challenge, on Sept. 15 to 18.