9/4/2010 - VOLLEYBALL Bemidji State uses sweeps of Black Hills State and Dickinson State to finish tied for first at Blue Hawk Tournament

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DICKINSON, N.D. - The Bemidji State Volleyball team picked up their first two sweeps of the season on Saturday afternoon at the Blue Hawk Tournament in Dickinson, N.D. The Beavers opened up the day with a 3-0 victory over Black Hills State (25-21, 25-15, 25-20) and finished Saturday with a 3-0 win against Dickinson State (25-21, 25-20, 25-19).

BSU finished with a 3-1 record that tied the Beavers for first at the Blue Hawk Tournament. The Beavers had the best overall game record of all four teams (Bemidji State, Dickinson State, Black Hills State and Montana State-Northern) with a mark of 11-4.

“I think the nice thing to see today was the certain level of consistency we played with,” said Bemidji State head coach Wayne Chadwick. “We were really up and down in our first match against Montana State-Northern on Friday so it was nice to see us get in a rhythm of consistency today. We really remained calm even when we lost a few points in our matches today.”

Chadwick pointed to the improved play of several players on Saturday as being key to the Beavers’ sweep of Black Hills State and Dickinson State.

“I thought Jessi-Beth McCannell (Jr., S, Brandon, Manitoba) had a really nice and steady day for us in terms of her setting,” Chadwick said. “Also, Nicole Olson (Sr., MB, Baudette, Minn.) really played a much better game for us today in the middle and Brie Groskreutz (Sr., Lib., Reedsburg, Wis.) at libero is just a very good defensive player. But not only is it her defense but she had a stellar day controlling the ball for us.”

Chadwick’s 3-1 start as head coach at Bemidji State serves as the best four-game mark for a first year Beaver head coach since Pat Rosenbrock led BSU to a 3-1 record to begin the 1975 season.

Friday and Saturday’s matches in Dickinson were the first for the Beavers in 2010 contrasting to their three opponents this weekend who all came in with several matches.

“It was nice that we were able to work out the kinks this weekend,” Chadwick said. “All the teams we competed against are NAIA teams so they have been playing volleyball for about three weeks. It was nice to see us make improvement over the weekend and come away with three wins.”

The Beavers will return to the court next weekend when they head to Moorhead, Minn. for the Dragon Classic Sponsored by the Fairfield Inn by Marriott. BSU will open play at the tournament on Fri., Sept. 10 against Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference foe Northern State at 10:30 a.m. Bemidji State will also get in matches against Adelphi University, Minot State University and the University of Sioux Falls.

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