Box Score
(Peru, Neb.)—The Peru State volleyball team was defeated Friday night by No. 14 Park University in three sets. The Bobcats are now 6-19 on the season and 3-12 in Heart of America Athletic Conference play, while the Pirates are now 20-4 overall and 14-1 in conference play.
 
Below is a breakdown of how each set in the match went…
 
Peru State went toe to toe in the first set with the Pirates, as they were leading 7-5 early after a kill from Kennedy Miller (Plattsmouth). The Bobcat would be up two after a kill by Katie Mendick (Bellevue).
 
Park would then take an 11-10 lead, but Peru State would not back down as a mini 3-0 run with the help of Park errors had Peru State regain a 13-11 lead. The Pirates then tied the game again at 13 all, before the Bobcats took another two-point lead 15-13 after a kill by Mendick and an error on the Pirates.
 
Park then went on a 5-0 run to take an 18-15 lead, Peru State only scored three more times in the first set all from errors committed by Park. The Pirates won the first set 25-18.
 
Park flexed their muscle in the second set as they started out up 4-0 in the set. An error and then a block assist by Michelle Beer (Salem) and Keiley Hein (Omaha) had the Bobcats down two 4-2.
 
The Pirates then went on a 18-2 run to take a 23-4 lead in the second set. Back-to-back kills by Lauren Moubray (Mission, Texas) stopped the bleeding as the Bobcats were down 23-6. A couple of errors and a kill by Mendick had the Bobcats on a 5-0 run down 23-9. Park won the second 25-9.
 
Park started the third set up 5-0, before Mendick would get the first kill for Peru State. Park would have firm control of the third set as they were up 13-5, before another kill by Mendick.
 
Park kept its distance for most of the third set as they led 17-8 late in the third before Chantal Paniagua (Santo Domingo, D.R.) got a kill to make the score 17-9.
 
Park was up 19-9 before Beer and Hein would get their second block assist of the match. The Bobcats then went on a 4-1 run with the help of errors from the Pirates and a kill by Miller.
 
Unfortunately, that would be the last points of the match for the Bobcats as they fell to the Pirates in the third set 25-14. Park won the match 3-0.
 
Mendick led the way in kills with seven, Hein followed with five and Moubray finished with three.  Hein and Beer each had two blocks. Rylee Hellbusch (Plattsmouth) led the way in assists with ten, Olivia Gordon (Oskaloosa, Iowa) had eight and Mattie Nichols (Auburn) had one.
 
Nichols finished with 13 digs, while Paniagua had nine and Gordon had five.

Peru State has a quick turnaround as they face undefeated No. 11 MidAmerica Nazarene on Saturday 9:30 a.m. in the Al Wheeler Activity Center.