BISMARCK, N.D. – Bismarck State College ended their last-ever volleyball at the Armory in dramatic fashion Saturday afternoon, rallying twice and dominating the decisive fifth set to defeat Mayville State 3–2 (20–25, 25–23, 25–23, 14–25, 15–10). The win moves the Mystics to 5–20 overall and 3–17 in the Frontier, while the Comets drop to 6–19 and 3–16.
Honored before the game, and playing in their final home game for the Mystics, were
Chelsa Krom and
Kate Zimmer. Krom added to an already successful career, recording 11 kills, including the game-winning kill in the final set. Zimmer, who has been out since Oct. 4 with a knee injury, couldn't be stopped from suiting up for her final home game, much less playing in the game as she entered to serve in the first and recorded a dig, drawing a respective applause from the crowd.
How it Happened
Mayville State controlled the opening set behind an efficient .282 hitting performance, but BSC steadied its serve-receive and flipped momentum in the second and third frames, taking both by 25–23 scores. The Mystics hit .243 in Set 2 and leaned on balanced scoring to erase multiple late deficits.
The Comets responded with their best defensive set of the night in the fourth, limiting BSC to .095 hitting while swinging a match-high .351 themselves to force a fifth set. But the Mystics jumped ahead 6–2 in the race to 15 and never relinquished control, closing the match on a 4–1 run.
Standout Performances
Bismarck State
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Dedra Wood led the Mystics with 13 kills on .444 hitting, committing just one error on 27 swings.
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McKenna Brendel added 12 kills and a team-high 13.0 points while contributing two blocks.
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Reese Duchsherer posted an 8-kill, 12-dig double-double and served four aces.
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Delaney Deschamp posted 27 assists, leading the offense alongside Hannah Thiel, who recorded 21 assists.
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Piper Harris anchored the back row with 27 digs.
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BSC finished with 54 kills, 78 digs, and six total blocks as a team.
Mayville State
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Desidy Schwanke was dominant with a match-high 20 kills on .327 hitting, finishing with 22.0 points.
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Cadynce Dewitz added 11 kills (.300) and 5 digs.
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Lindsey Nyhagen and Danica Hanson combined for 52 assists, guiding the Comets to a .230 team attack percentage—well above BSC's season-average opponent hitting percentage.
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Mayville State tallied 80 digs and 14 team blocks, led by Andrea Majchrzak with three.
By the Numbers
| Category |
Mayville State |
Bismarck State |
| Kills |
63 |
54 |
| Hitting % |
.230 |
.146 |
| Assists |
60 |
52 |
| Aces |
6 |
6 |
| Digs |
80 |
78 |
| Blocks |
14.0 |
6.0 |
Turning Point
Tied 8–8 in the fifth, BSC strung together three straight defensive stops and forced two Mayville State attack errors, creating the separation needed to close out the match and send the Armory crowd into pandemonium one final time.
Up Next
The Mystics hit the road for their final weekend of the regular season, facing Carroll (Mont.) (15-13, 10-10) and Rocky Mountain (Mont.) (2-22, 1-18).
They head to Helena to face Carroll on Thursday, Nov. 6, with game time set for 7 p.m. CST. Their game in Billings on Friday, Nov. 6 against Rocky is also set for 7 p.m. CST.
Make sure to check the volleyball schedule for information on how to stream and attend the upcoming games.
Be sure to visit BSCMystics.com and download the MysticNation app to continue to stay up to date with everything going on in Mystic Athletics.
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