ST. PAUL, Minn. - Bethany volleyball swept the competition Saturday at the Macalester Invite, shutting out Caltech 3-0 before a four-set win over Simpson, avenging a loss to the Storm two weeks ago. The Vikings improve to 5-5 overall. 

Bethany 3, Caltech 0

Caltech owned much of the momentum throughout the first set, taking leads of 7-4 and later 20-16, but the Vikings responded late with a 9-1 run to close out the frame 25-21. Maddie Meyer had three service aces in the final run. 

Bethany rolled its momentum into the second, jumping out to a 9-3 lead. Caltech answered with a 10-3 lead to gain a 13-12 advantage and the lead changed sides five more times the rest of the set. Tied at 23, Caltech landed a kill to serve set point, but the Vikings responded with three straight kills from Meyer to win 26-24. 

Caltech jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the third and then went up 11-6 before five straight point by the Vikings tied the score at 11. Caltech didn't give up the lead and held set point at 24-23, but once again the Vikings had an answer as Sydney Carlson landed a kill to tie the game. Caltech held set point again at 25-24 before a service error tied the game and a Sydney Carlson kill gave Bethany set point at 26-25. Caltech tied the score but kills from Maddie Meyer and Lilly Mehrkens won the game at 28-26. 

Meyer led the attack with 12 kills and a .370 hitting percentage. Mehrkens was next with 11 kills and added nine digs. Abby Distad posted 41 assists and six digs. Kylie Smidt led the back line with 13 digs, while Avery Carlson added 10. Bethany out-hit Caltech .205-.133. 

Bethany 3, Simpson 1

After suffering a 3-0 loss to Simpson on Aug. 30, the Vikings got revenge with a four-set win today. 

The Storm started with early leads of 5-2 and 11-7 before the Vikings went on a 7-3 run the tie the score at 14. Bethany eventually took a 21-19 lead with a 7-2 run and held set-point at 24-21, but the Storm rattled off five straight points to close out the frame 26-24. 

Bethany had the upper hand for most of the second set until Simpson took its first lead at 19-18. The Storm then held set-point at 24-22, but this time the VIkings had the late really with four straight points to close out the set 26-24. Distad had two aces to tie the score at 24 and then take a 25-24 lead. A kill from Mehrkens ended it. 

The Vikings rolled their momentum into the third with a quick 12-4 lead and never looked back in a decisive 25-17 win. Simpson got back on track to start the fourth with a 7-1 lead. The Storm led by as much as eight points at 14-6 before the VIkings went on a 9-3 run to close the gap to two. Bethany was able to finish the match on a 6-2 run with consecutive kills by Carlson to win 26-24. 

Meyer led the offense again with 17 kills and a blistering .607 attack percentage. Meyer had 28 attempts with zero errors. Mehrkens added 16 kills and 10 digs for a double-double. Smidt posted a season-high 27 digs to lead the defense. Mel Raasch was next with 18 digs. Distad finished with a season-best 50 assists. 

Bethany returns home Wednesday night, hosting Buena Vista at 7 p.m. 
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