BISMARCK, N.D. -- Donned in bright pink, the Bismarck State volleyball team rallied from a 2-0 deficit in sets to beat Dickinson State (N.D.) 3-2 (21-25, 23-25, 25-23, 25-22, 15-9) on Wednesday night behind an electrifying crowd at the Bavendick Center.
The win improves BSC to 8-11 overall and 6-8 in Frontier Conference play and snaps a four-match losing streak. Dickinson State falls to 6-15 overall and 5-9 in the Frontier. The teams split the season series after the Blue Hawks won the first meeting 3-1 on Sept. 2. The Mystics now break their tie with the Blue Hawks and hold sole possession of the seventh spot in the conference standings.
"We challenged them to treat this match like a playoff match. If we lose, it's going to be very hard to get back up to that top eight. Dickinson played well, and we had to raise the bar of our play. Luckily, we got more balls to drop on their side than ours. The crowd was awesome. The energy was electric!" said Bismarck State head coach Kyle Kuether.
Set One: Blue Hawks Hold Off a Rally
Dickinson State led 9-4 early, but the Mystics scored 10 of the next 16 points to pull within 15-14. The Blue Hawks scored three straight to lead 18-14, and BSC answered with three straight of its own to get within 18-17. Dickinson State closed out a 25-21 win and hit .300 in the set to BSC's .225.
Set Two: Another Close Finish
The set was tied eight times and had three lead changes. BSC led 11-8, but Dickinson State tied it at 12-12 and went ahead for good at 16-15. Trailing 20-16, the Mystics scored three straight to pull within 20-19, and they got within 24-23 before the Blue Hawks closed it out 25-23 to take a 2-0 match lead.
Set Three: Mystics Stay Alive
Trailing 6-2 early, Bismarck State scored four straight points after a timeout to tie it at 6-6. The set was tied 12 times with four lead changes. Down 20-19, the Mystics scored four straight on kills by Reese Duchsherer, McKenna Brendel, Ellie Baumstarck and Brendel to lead 23-20. Dickinson State scored three straight to tie it at 23-23, but Jordyn Rossow's kill and a Dickinson State attack error blocked by Rossow and Baumstarck sealed the 25-23 win.
Set Four: Hogan Starts Hot
Aislyn Hogan served the first six points of the set, including two aces, and BSC led 6-0 en route to a 17-13 lead. Dickinson State scored three straight to get within 17-16 and took its first lead of the set at 19-18 on a Taylor Gaer ace. The set was tied four times, including at 21-21, before the Mystics won four of the last five points, ending it on a Duchsherer ace for a 25-22 win.
Set Five: Mystics Lead Wire to Wire
Bismarck State led from the first point to the last in the deciding set, with no ties and no lead changes. The Mystics hit .353 to Dickinson State's .077, scored three straight to take a 9-5 lead, and went up 14-7 before Rossow's kill ended it 15-9.
Mystics Key Performers
- Reese Duchsherer led the way with a team-high 19.0 points on 18 kills and an ace, adding 24 digs for her 11th double-double
- Jordyn Rossow added 14 kills, hitting .394, and 5 block assists for 16.5 points
- McKenna Brendel contributed 12 kills for 12.5 points
- Jordyn Rood chipped in 10 kills for 10.5 points
- Ellie Baumstarck finished with 6 kills and 7 blocks (two solo, five assists) for 10.5 points
- Piper Harris paced the defense with a team-high 31 digs
- Aislyn Hogan ran the offense with 51 assists, 4 aces and 12 digs
- Aubrey Flynn added 3 aces in a reserve role
Game Notes
- Bismarck State hit .163 as a team (61 kills, 26 errors, 215 attempts). Dickinson State hit .127 (61 kills, 33 errors, 221 attempts)
- The Mystics out-aced the Blue Hawks 11-8, and both teams finished with 8.0 team blocks
- The "reverse sweep" (comeback from down two sets) is the first of its kind for the Mystics since they did it against Montana Western at home on Oct. 17, 2025 (362 days ago).
- The match featured 25 ties and nine lead changes, including 12 ties and four lead changes in set three
- The Mystics improve to 5-3 at home this season
- First varsity win for the Mystics over DSU in the all-time series
Upcoming Home Games
Bismarck State wraps up its home stretch at the Bavendick Center with two more matches:
- Friday, Oct. 16 -- vs. Montana Western, 6 p.m. Montana Western is 10-11 overall, 9-5 Frontier.
- Saturday, Oct. 17 -- vs. Montana Tech, 3 p.m. Montana Tech is 15-4 overall, 10-3 Frontier.
JV Notes
The Mystics' JV squad tied with the Blue Hawks' JV squad, 1-1. They continue their schedule with two more matches upcoming at the Bavendick Center:
- Saturday, Oct. 17 -- vs. Lake Region State (N.D.), 12 p.m.
- Wednesday, Oct. 21 -- vs. Jamestown (N.D.), 7 p.m.
See the volleyball schedule for more information on how to watch, follow and attend the upcoming matches.
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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