TOLEDO, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University volleyball team took on the Toledo Rockets inside Savage Arena Tuesday night (Oct. 7). The two teams battled throughout the match with 10 lead changes spread through the four sets. In the end, Toledo came away with a 3-1 final, giving BGSU their first road MAC regular season loss since Nov. 3, 2023 after 13 consecutive wins. The Falcons move to 4-1 within the MAC this season while being 10-7 on the year. 

How It Happened
Set 1: Toledo 25, Bowling Green 23

• Jessica Andrews started the match with a kill for the Falcons, starting a back-and-forth between the teams in the early going, moving to a 3-2 score. Consecutive points for Bowling Green broke the point trading with a 4-2 lead.
• Each team added a point, but the Rockets worked for a 5-0 run to take an 8-5 advantage in the set. A kill from Avery Hobson for Bowling Green ended the run with the score at 8-6.
• The back-and-forth on the scoreboard resumed from there, taking the score to a 10-7 tally. A successful challenge by the Rockets granted them consecutive points, beginning a 3-0 run for a 12-7 lead to prompt a timeout from the Bowling Green bench.
• The run continued after the timeout, reaching 4-0 with a 13-7 Toledo lead. BGSU answered with a 3-0 burst of their own, cutting the score down to 13-10.
• The back-and-forth again resumed between the teams, pushing the score to 16-13, but Toledo tallied back-to-back points for an 18-13 lead with the second BGSU timeout of the set.
• Coming out of the timeout, the Orange and Brown registered a 3-0 run, including an emphatic kill by Hobson, to cut the score down to 18-16 with Toledo taking a timeout.
• Toledo notched a point after the break, but another pair of BGSU points pulled the Falcons within one, 19-18, following a 5-1 stretch.
• The Rockets managed to push their lead back to 21-19. The back-and-forth moved the score to 22-20, but a pair of Toledo points made it a 24-20 score.
• The Falcons challenged with a 3-0 run, again drawing within one with the score at 24-23 with Toledo taking their second timeout.
• Out of the break, Toledo tallied a point to take a close and hard fought first set.

Set 2: Bowling Green 25, Toledo 19

• Amanda Otten began the second set with an ace for Bowling Green. Toledo landed a point, but the Falcons answered with a 4-0 run to take a 5-1 lead to begin the set.
• Toledo recorded two points, but the Falcons answered back with two of their own before the next Rocket point for a 7-4 tally.
• From there, Bowling Green battled back with a 3-0 run, including back-to-back kills from Helen Wilford to build a 10-4 advantage with Toledo taking a timeout.
• Coming out of the timeout, the Rockets worked for a 3-1 span to cut into the lead, 11-7. Wilford landed a kill, but two more Toledo points followed for a 12-9 score.
• The Falcons utilized a 3-0 run to rebuild the lead back to 15-9, but a 3-0 run for Toledo came in response for a 15-12 score. 
• The trading of runs continued with a 3-0 burst for Bowling Green, including a Hobson ace after a successful BGSU challenge, to push the score to 18-12 with Toledo taking their second timeout of the set.
• The run continued for the Orange and Brown after the break, reaching a 5-0 run for a 20-12 lead. The Rockets used a 3-1 stretch to narrow the gap to 21-15, but back-to-back BGSU blocks made it a 23-15 lead.
• Toledo challenged late in the set with another 4-1 stretch for a 24-19 score, but a kill from Hobson sealed the set for the Falcons.

Set 3: Toledo 25, Bowling Green 18

• Toledo logged the first point of the third set with the two teams trading points to a 3-3 score early in the set. 
• The first consecutive points of the set came for the Falcons, jumping to a 4-3 advantage, but Toledo tallied consecutive points of their own, stretching to a 3-0 run for a 6-4 score.
• The Falcons worked back to tie it, 6-6, with a pair of points, but two for Toledo put them back in front with an 8-6 score.
• The momentum swings continued with a 3-1 stretch for Bowling Green tying the set score at 9-9. However, two points for the Rockets kept the back-and-forth going for an 11-9 score.
• Side-out scoring for both sides pushed the score to 13-11 with Toledo moving out to a 15-11 lead at the media timeout following a 3-0 burst.
• The run for the Rockets carried through the break, reaching 5-0 with the Falcons taking a timeout at a 17-11 score. Another point after the timeout made it 18-11.
• The Falcons registered a point, but another pair of points for Toledo extended the score to 20-12 with the second BGSU timeout of the set.
• Coming out of the timeout, the two teams went back-and-forth to a 23-15 score before a 3-0 run for the Falcons cut the score down to 23-18.
• Toledo closed out the set with a pair of points for a 25-18 score.

Set 4: Toledo 25, Bowling Green 16

• The second set started with a 4-0 run for the Rockets. A kill from Hobson tallied the first Falcon point of the set. Edyta Waclawczyk followed with a kill while an attack error made it a 3-0 BGSU run, cutting the deficit down to 4-3.
• Toledo worked for a 4-1 stretch, taking their score to 8-4. A kill from Waclawczyk ended the stretch and began a back-and-forth for a score of 10-7.
• Back-to-back points for the Falcons narrowed the gap to 10-8, but Toledo responded with 3-0 run for a 13-8 score and a BGSU timeout.
• The Falcons landed two points out of the break, trimming the Toledo lead to 13-10, but the Rockets answered with two as well for a 15-10 tally.
• The momentum shifts continued with the Falcons going on a 3-0 run for a 15-13 score. A pair of Toledo points made it 17-13 with Bowling Green taking their second timeout of the set.
• The run for Toledo carried through the timeout, reaching 5-0 with a 20-13 score. The run stretched to a 7-1 span for a 22-14 Toledo lead.
• The Falcons worked for two points, but the Rockets held on for a 25-16 score.

Falcon Stat Leaders
Kills: Avery Hobson (15)
Assists: Amanda Otten (19)
Digs: Sydnie Hernandez (16)
Aces: Avery Hobson (2)
Blocks: Kendall Williams (6)

Falcon Stat Facts

• Avery Hobson led the Bowling Green attack in the match, landing 15 kills for the Falcons. Hobson has now led or tied for the team lead in kills in seven of the last eight matches for the Falcons as well as eight of the last 10.
• Jessica Andrews and Edyta Waclawczyk each added 11 kills. Andrews also logged a season-high four digs. 
• Kendall Williams led the BGSU block with six block assists, matching her season-high. It marks the second time in the last three matches that Williams has had six block assists.  
• Anna Sitek made her season debut for the Falcons, entering during the third set. Sitek totaled 14 assists while adding five digs in the match. 
• Sydnie Hernandez led the back line for Bowling Green with 16 digs, continuing her streak of leading the team or tying for the team lead in digs in each of the last 13 matches. 
• Avery Anders followed Hernandez in the dig column with eight while adding a season-high three assists to match her career-high.

Up Next
BGSU will be back at home later this week to host Northern Illinois on both Thursday (Oct. 9) and Friday (Oct. 10). Thursday's match will be a White Out at the Stroh Center while Friday will be Alumni Night. 

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