SIOUX CITY, S.D. — The Bethel College Volleyball team opened up their 2026 campaign at the Siouxland Volleyball Invitational as they took on #3 Concordia and Briar Cliff on Friday, before closing the weekend with a match against Mount Mercy.
Bethel College fell to the #3 ranked Concordia University, Nebraska in a straight-set loss, with scores of 20-25, 17-25, 21-25, at CNOS Fieldhouse on Friday. Despite the defeat, the Threshers achieved a .265 hitting percentage in the opening set.
**First Set**
- Bethel started strong with an early service ace from
Cameron Offerle, taking a 2-0 lead.
- Concordia tied the score at 5-5 with kills from Shandy Faalii.
- Concordia extended its lead to 16-10 with two service aces by Clara Evert.
- Bethel closed the gap to 20-22 after attack errors by Lanie Brott, but Concordia secured the set 25-20 with a service ace from Jenna Sladky.
**Second Set**
- Concordia began with a 4-0 run, including a kill by Makenna Starkey and a service ace by Kyla Griess.
- Bethel narrowed the gap to 12-8 with kills from Mari Phillips and
Alayna Vines.
- Concordia reached 16-10 with a service ace by Clara Evert.
- Bethel managed a late push with a service ace from
Cameron Offerle but fell short.
- Concordia closed the set with a kill by Lanie Brott, taking it 25-17.
**Third Set**
- Concordia capitalized on Bethel errors to take an initial 1-0 lead.
- Bethel briefly pulled ahead 14-13 on a block by
Alayna Vines.
- Concordia gained control with a four-point run, featuring a service ace by Shandy Faalii, advancing to 17-14.
- Despite late efforts from Bethel players, Concordia secured the set 25-21 with a final kill from Shandy Faalii.
Bethel Top Performers
Cameron Offerle
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- Five kills
- Two service aces
- Five digs
Darla Crow
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- Seven kills with a .312 hitting percentage
- One solo block, two block assists
Elena Vanderweg
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- 11 assists
- Four digs
Alayna Vines
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- Six kills on a .545 hitting percentage
- One solo block, two block assists
In their second contest on Friday, the Threshers fell to Briar Cliff University in a closely contested five-set match, with a final score of 2-3 at CNOS Fieldhouse. Despite the loss, Bethel delivered a strong serving performance, recording 12 aces throughout the match.
First Set
- Bethel capitalized on early Briar Cliff attack errors to establish a 6-1 lead, with
Ava Pizana contributing three consecutive points.
- A 5-0 run, featuring a service ace from
Dalaina Schutte, extended Bethel's lead to 11-2.
- Later at 18-7, Offerle delivered back-to-back service aces.
- Bethel closed the set decisively with two consecutive service aces by
Dylan Cochran, securing a 25-13 victory.
Second Set
- Briar Cliff opened with momentum, taking a 3-0 lead, aided by two attack errors from Bethel's
Darla Crow.
- Bethel responded with a series of kills to capture a 7-4 advantage.
- A service ace from Cochran pushed Bethel ahead 11-9.
- Despite Briar Cliff's late push, Bethel sealed the set 25-23 with a kill by Offerle.
Third Set
- Bethel started strong with a kill from Crow to take the first point.
- Briar Cliff responded with a 4-1 run, highlighted by a service ace from Ireland Jackson.
- Bethel tied the set at 4-4 after two consecutive attack errors by Briar Cliff.
- Briar Cliff gained momentum with a 7-0 stretch, extending its lead to 17-10.
- Bethel fought back with kills from
Lillian Like and Offerle, but Briar Cliff secured the set 25-16.
Fourth Set
- Briar Cliff started strong, taking a 4-0 lead with consecutive points.
- Bethel responded with an 8-0 run to move ahead 8-4.
- The teams traded points, with Bethel maintaining a slight edge at 16-14.
- Briar Cliff closed the set with a decisive kill, winning 25-23.
Fifth Set
- Briar Cliff established early control with a 3-0 lead.
- Bethel responded with a 4-1 run, leveling at 5-5.
- Vines delivered a service ace to briefly push Bethel ahead 6-5, but Briar Cliff rallied back to tie it at 9-9.
- Briar Cliff closed the set on a decisive 6-1 run to secure the 15-10 victory.
Bethel Top Performers
Cameron Offerle
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- 12 kills on 33 attempts
- 6 service aces
- 23 digs
Elena Vanderweg
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- 24 assists
- 7 digs
Ava Pizana
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- 16 digs
Alayna Vines
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- 3 solo blocks
- 5.0 total blocks
In their final match of the Invitational, Bethel fell to Mount Mercy in a 3-1 decision on Saturday, with set scores of 15-25, 25-21, 16-25, and 16-25. The Threshers recorded 13 total blocks in the match.
First Set
- Mount Mercy opened with a commanding 6-0 lead.
- The Threshers responded with a service ace from
Tori Morrison to narrow the gap to 8-4.
- Mount Mercy extended its lead to 15-5.
- Despite a late push by Bethel to bring the score to 22-15, Mount Mercy secured the set 25-15.
Second Set
- Bethel gained momentum with a 5-1 run early, reaching an 8-4 advantage.
- Mount Mercy attempted to close the gap, but Bethel extended its lead to 16-9.
- Despite a series of errors allowing Mount Mercy to narrow the deficit to 22-19, Bethel maintained control.
- Bethel secured the set victory at 25-21.
Third Set
- Bethel started strong with a service ace from
Dalaina Schutte.
- Mount Mercy went on a significant early run, extending its lead to 11-4.
- After a timeout by Bethel, the visiting team managed a small run, closing the gap to 11-6.
- Despite efforts by Bethel to close in, Mount Mercy secured the set 25-16.
Fourth Set
- Mount Mercy started strongly with a 3-0 run.
- Bethel responded, closing the gap to 5-4.
- Mount Mercy extended its lead to 14-6.
- Bethel rallied to 21-16, but Mount Mercy secured the set 25-16.
Bethel Top Performers
Mari Phillips
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- five block assists
Dylan Cochran
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- one solo block
- four block assists
Dalaina Schutte
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- 22 assists
- three kills
- one service ace
Alayna Vines
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- one solo block
- seven block assists
Their next game will take place at the CSM Labor Day Classic against the University of Saint Francis on Friday, Sept. 4 at 10 a.m. in Omaha, Neb.
