MISHAWAKA, Ind. - The University of Saint Francis (Ind.) women's volleyball team lost a three-set match at Bethel University on Saturday, September 27. Bethel won with set scores of 25-20, 25-17, 25-17.

The two teams traded points early in the first set. With the score even at 17-17, Bethel used a kill to take the lead, but Saint Francis responded with an ace to tie it at 18-18. After Bethel edged ahead by two points, Saint Francis called a timeout in an attempt to regroup, but the Pilots held on to narrowly win the set 25-20.

Bethel carried their momentum into the second set, quickly building a 15-5 lead. The Cougars battled back to cut the deficit to four, making it 19-15 in favor of BU. However, Saint Francis was unable to slow the Pilots' attack, and Bethel closed out the set 25-17.

Bethel's strong offensive performance continued in the third set, as the Cougars fell 25-17. The Pilots hit .429 in Saturday's match, earning their fifth league win and improving to 13-8 overall.

As a team, the Cougars recorded 32 kills and seven service aces. Kayla Gumbel led SF with a .333 hitting percentage and 11 kills. Annabelle Sweigert added six kills, while Teigen Fortkamp finished with 27 assists. Kellyn Bertsch had a team-high three aces, followed by Hannah Quinn with two. Defensively, Hannah Sweeney led with eight digs while Gumbel, Madison Dhoore, Kate McMullen and Kendal Frey each had a block assist. 

Up next, Saint Francis (4-16, 0-8 CL) will travel to Ohio as the Cougars face No. 16 Mount Vernon Nazarene for a mid-week Crossroads League battle on October 1. 

Founded in 1890 in the Catholic Franciscan tradition, the University of Saint Francis offers more than 60 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs through the College of Health Sciences and the College of Arts, Sciences, and Business. In addition to its traditional programs, Saint Francis designs focused curricula for working adults in Fort Wayne, Crown Point, Lafayette and online. Saint Francis Downtown houses the music technology program while offering enhanced internship and networking opportunities for students. The University of Saint Francis, recognized as an NAIA Five-Star Champion of Character institution, has 21 athletic programs boasting two individual and four team NAIA national championships. More than 1,900 students from a broad geographic region attend Saint Francis.