Box Score (LOUISVILLE, Ky., Oct. 18)—Senior libero Maddie Kelly (Lake Saint Louis, MO/Timberland) became one of just a handful of players in McKendree University volleyball history to collect 1,000 career digs during the Bearcats' four-set loss Friday night at Bellarmine University. The Bearcats were defeated in the Great Lakes Valley Conference match by scores of 25-23, 26-24, 25-27 and 25-15.
 
Kelly registered a team-high 31 digs in the contest, giving her 1,009 in her second season as a member of the McKendree volleyball program. She needs 88 more to move into fifth place on the Bearcats' career list for digs. McKendree Hall of Fame inductee Karen Eversgerd posted 1,096 digs during her playing days at McKendree in the early 1990s.
 
With Friday's loss, McKendree slips to 5-14 overall and 3-7 in the GLVC. The Bearcats will be in Evansville, Ind., on Saturday afternoon for another GLVC contest against the University of Southern Indiana. First serve is set for 3 p.m.
 
Against Bellarmine, senior outside hitter Maureen Nesbit (Belleville, IL/Althoff Catholic) posted a double-double for the Bearcats with a team-high 11 kills to go along with 14 digs. Sophomore right-side hitter Taylor Voss (Breese, IL/Breese Central) chipped in with 10 attacks, while had a season-high eight blocks with three solos.
 
Freshman setter Aubry Dickmann (Edwardsville, IL/Edwardsville) handed out a team-leading 21 assists, and fellow freshman setter Breanna Howe (Mt. Pulaski, IL/Mt. Pulaski) was close behind with 15 sets.
 
McKendree and Bellarmine battled toe-to-toe for the first three sets in Friday's contest. There were eight ties and three lead changes in the opening set. The Bearcats overcame a three-point deficit midway through the set to grab a 22-20 lead before the host Knights called a timeout. From there, Bellarmine scored five of the final six points to seize an early lead. The lone point for McKendree during the decisive run was a kill from Voss that helped the Bearcats pull within 24-23.
 
The second set played out in similar fashion, although McKendree used a 5-2 burst to build a 23-19 advantage late in the set. Nesbit put down a kill to account for the final point in the run. Once again, Bellarmine regrouped and reeled off five consecutive points to grab a 24-23 advantage. Sophomore middle hitter Rachel Nelson (Papillion, NE/Papillion-LaVista South) helped the Bearcats avoid match point with a kill to tie the set one more time at 24-24, but the Knights fought back to win the final two points to build a 2-0 lead in the match.
 
The Bearcats responded by leading most of the third set on its way to the 27-25 win. McKendree's largest lead came at 16-11 following a Bellarmine attack error. The Knights rallied once more and eventually took a 20-18 lead. McKendree answered by tying the match and eventually pulling out the two-point win to force a fourth set. However, the Knights opened up a 16-9 lead midway through the set thanks to a 7-1 run that helped seal the win for the hosts.
 
Ashley Jefferson put down a match-high 22 kills for Bellarmine (9-7, 5-5 GLVC), while Bailey BredenbeckCorp handed out 45 assists in the contest for the Knights.