November 4, 2024
BISMARCK, N.D. – No. 6 ranked Bellevue (Neb.) swept the final edition (No. 12 edition) of the North Star Athletic Association Women’s Volleyball Players-of-the-Week, announced by the conference office Monday.  Kealy Kiviniemi was named as the Attacker-of-the-Week, Mila Aiwohi as the Setter of the Week, and Taylan Keefer as the Defender of the Week.

NSAA Volleyball Attacker-of-the-Week
Kealy Kiviniemi – Bellevue (Neb.) – 6’1”, Junior, right side – Bellevue, Neb. – Kiviniemi led No. 6 ranked Bellevue (Neb.) to a pair of road sweeps, clinching a share of the North Star Athletic Association regular-season title.  She smashed 10 kills (3.3 kills per set), hit .258, collected eight digs and four blocks in BU’s 3-0 victory at Valley City State (N.D.).  She followed up with 11 kills (3.7 kills per set) and hit .417 in 3-0 Bellevue win at Mayville State (N.D.).  For the week, Kiviniemi accumulated 21 kills, averaged 3.5 kills per set, and hit .327.  She also had 12 digs and five blocks for the week.

NSAA Volleyball Setter-of-the-Week
Mila Aiwohi – Bellevue (Neb.) – 5’0”, Sophomore, setter – Ewa Beach, Hawaii – Aiwohi collected a total of 58 set assists in leading No. 6 ranked Bellevue (Neb.) to a pair of road victories, clinching a share of the North Star regular-season title.  She produced 31 set assists (10.3 assists per set) and two service aces in BU’s 3-0 victory at Valley City State (N.D.).  She followed up with 27 set assists (9.0 assists per set) and four digs in 3-0 win at Mayville State (N.D.).  For the week, Aiwohi averaged 9.7 set assists per set.  She also had seven digs and three service aces for the week.

NSAA Volleyball Defender-of-the-Week
Taylan Keefer – Bellevue (Neb.) – 5’4”, Senior, libero/defensive specialist – Council Bluffs, Iowa – Keefer led No. 6 ranked Bellevue (Neb.) to a pair of road sweeps, clinching a share of the North Star Athletic Association regular-season title.  She collected 30 digs (10.0 digs per set) in 3-0 BU’s victory at Valley City State (N.D.).  She followed up with 15 digs in another 3-0 sweep at Mayville State (N.D.).  For the week, Keefer accumulated 45 digs and averaged 7.5 digs per set.  She also contributed three set assists and two service aces.

Recap from last week’s action
Jamestown (N.D.), No. 4 in the latest NAIA Women’s Volleyball Coaches’ Top 25 national poll, earned a pair of victories.  The Jimmies clinched a share of the North Star regular-season title with a 3-0 sweep at Dickinson State (N.D.) on Halloween.  UJ followed up with a 3-0 home sweep over Dordt (Iowa) on Nov. 1.  Jamestown lifted their overall record to 21-1 and 9-1 NSAA conference record.  Dickinson State is 5-20 overall record and 1-9 NSAA conference record.

Bellevue (Neb.), who climbed two spots from No. 8 to No. 6 in the latest national poll, also clinched a share of the North Star conference regular-season title after going 2-0 record on the road.  The Bruins swept Valley City State (N.D.) 3-0 on Nov. 1, followed by another 3-0 sweep at Mayville State (N.D.).  Bellevue ballooned their winning streak to 12 games, raising their overall record to 26-3 on the season and 9-1 record in the league.

Valley City State (N.D.) held on to defeat (RV) Dakota State (S.D.) in four sets on Oct. 30.  The Trojans then earned a 3-0 sweep over Mayville State on Nov. 1.  Dakota State (16-11 overall record) and Valley City State (14-13 overall record), who swept Dordt on Nov. 1, each finished for a third-place tie in the conference standings with a 5-5 record each.  Mayville State is 8-18 overall record.

Both Dickinson State and Mayville State finished the league with a 1-9 record each.

Looking Ahead
No. 4 Jamestown (N.D.) plays their final regular-season match on Thursday evening at home versus NCAA Division II Minot State (N.D.).

The 2024 North Star Athletic Association (NSAA) Volleyball conference postseason tournament is set. All six teams will play in the conference postseason tournament, with the top two seeds receiving a bye in the quarterfinals round on Nov. 9.  The No. 1 seed will host the two semifinal and championship matches on Nov. 15-16.

Bellevue (Neb.) (26-3 overall record, No. 6 in the NAIA national poll) and Jamestown (N.D.) (21-1 overall record before their regular-season finale on Thursday, No. 4 in the NAIA national poll) shared the North Star Athletic Association regular-season title with a 9-1 record.  The Bruins own the tiebreaker over the Jimmies, based on the total points won in both meetings (both meetings went to three sets, with BU winning in total points 131-126).  Both Bellevue and Jamestown received the opening round bye in the postseason tournament, while the Bruins host the final two days of the conference tournament at Gordon Lozier Athletic Center (1024 Bruin Blvd).

Dakota State (S.D.) (16-11 overall record, receiving votes in the NAIA national poll) and Valley City State (N.D.) (14-13 overall record) were tied for third in the conference standings with a 5-5 record each.  The Trojans own the tiebreaker over the Vikings in numbers of sets won during their head-to-head meetings (DaSU won first meeting in three sets, while VCSU won the second meeting in four sets – DaSU four sets won to VCSU three sets won).

No. 3 seed belongs to Dakota State, while No. 4 seed goes to Valley City State.  Both teams will host the NSAA quarterfinals round this weekend.

There is another tie in the NSAA women’s volleyball standings between Dickinson State (N.D.) (5-20 overall record) and Mayville State (N.D.) (8-18 overall record) for fifth place with a 1-9 league record each.  The Blue Hawks own a tiebreaker over the Comets based on total points scored in both meetings (MSU won first meeting in three sets, while DiSU won the second meet – DiSU 135 points to MSU 131 points). 

No. 5 seed goes to Dickinson State and No. 6 seed belongs to Mayville State.

Valley City State hosts Dickinson State Friday evening in the first quarterfinal match at W.E. Osman Fieldhouse in Valley City, N.D. at 6 p.m.  Dakota State hosts Mayville State Saturday afternoon in the second quarterfinal match at DSU Fieldhouse in Madison, S.D., at 1 p.m.

The quarterfinal winners will advance to the semifinals round on Friday, Nov. 15, in Bellevue.  No. 2 seed Jamestown will play the winner of MSU-DaSU match at 5 p.m., followed by second semifinal match between No. 1 seed Bellevue and DiSU-VCSU winner at 7 p.m.

The semifinal winners will play in the NSAA Championship match on Saturday, Nov. 16 at 2 p.m.   

            Thursday’s Match
            Minot State (N.D.) @ (4) Jamestown (N.D.) – 7 p.m.

            Friday’s Match – NSAA Quarterfinals
            Dickinson State (N.D.) @ Valley City State (N.D.) – 6 p.m.

            Saturday’s Match – NSAA Quarterfinals
            Mayville State (N.D.) @ (RV) Dakota State (S.D.) – 1 p.m.

            Friday, Nov. 15 – NSAA Semifinals @ Bellevue, Neb.
            MSU-DaSU winner vs. (4) Jamestown (N.D.) – 5 p.m.
            DiSU-VCSU winner @ (6) Bellevue (Neb.) – 7 p.m.

            Saturday, Nov. 16 – NSAA Championship Match @ Bellevue, Neb.
            Friday’s winners – 2 p.m.
 
NSAA Volleyball Standings
 

School	Overall Record	NSAA Record	Games Behind	Streak
(6) Bellevue (Neb.)	26-3	9-1	-----	Won 12
(4) Jamestown (N.D.)	21-1	9-1	-----	Won 2
(RV) Dakota State (S.D.)	16-11	5-5	4.0	Won 1
Valley City State (N.D.)	14-13	5-5	4.0	Won 1
Dickinson State (N.D.)	5-20	1-9	8.0	Lost 4
Mayville State (N.D.)	8-18	1-9	8.0	Lost 10