Buena Vista edges Storm in A-R-C battle

INDIANOLA, Iowa -- Niya Harris produced a double-double as the Simpson volleyball team lost a five-set thriller against Buena Vista on Tuesday inside Cowles Fieldhouse in the American Rivers Conference match.

The Beavers (5-10, 2-1 American Rivers) won with set scores of 18-25, 25-21, 20-25, 28-26 and 15-11 to go above .500 in league play.

Simpson opened the match with a first set victory by hitting .294 with 14 kills and held Buena Vista to a .067 hitting clip. The teams traded wins over the next two sets and the Storm were sitting at 2-1 heading into the fourth frame. The Beavers came out strong with a 7-3 burst in the fourth and held on late to hold off Simpson's rally. Buena Vista hit a blistering .533 in the fifth to win the match after the Storm started on a 3-1 run. 

Harris had career-highs of 14 kills and a .387 hitting percentage, while also tying a career-high of 15 digs to help the Storm (8-9, 0-3 A-R-C) on both sides of the net. Harris displayed more athleticism at the net to tally five block assists for most in the match.

Along with Harris, Hannah Lester had a game-high 17 kills, while fellow senior Taylor Sudmann produced 15 kills. Alyssa Mathews had a season-high 51 assists and Ariana Martinez followed with 24 digs.

The Storm are now 3-4 in five-set matches this season, with this being the first such contest at home this year.

Up Next
Simpson travels to Decatur, Ill. on Saturday for the Millikin University Fall Triangular. The Storm take on Alma at 10 a.m. and end the day against the host, Millikin, at 12:30 p.m.