(Peru, Neb.)—The Peru State volleyball team won in dramatic fashion over the Culver-Stockton Wildcats in five sets. The Bobcats are now 6-12 overall and 3-5 in Heart of America Athletic Conference play, while the Wildcats are now 9-5 overall and 4-4 in conference play.
 
Below is a breakdown of how each set went in the match…
 
The Bobcats were leading in the first 8-4 after kills from Michelle Beer (Salem) and Kim Krise (Briggsdale, Colo.). Then a 5-2 run by the Wildcats had them Bobcats up  by two 11-9. The Wildcats would trail by two a few more times in the middle of the first as they were down 16-14.
 
The Bobcats would then start to pull away leading 18-14 after a kill by Katie Mendick (Bellevue). The Wildcats would trail by four for most of the end of the first set as the Bobcats led 21-17.
 
Then a 4-0 run with kills by Kennedy Miller (Plattsmouth), Mendick and an ace by Sidney Peck (Manitoba, Canada) ended the first set 25-17. 
 
 
In the second set the game was tied at four before Culver-Stockton took a 6-4 lead. Then a 7-1 run by the Bobcats with help of a couple errors and kills by Kylee Fischer (Bellevue), and Beer had the Bobcats with an 11-7 lead.
 
The Wildcats would cut it to within two at 12-10, but a quick 4-1 run with kills by Krise, Mendick and a service ace from Allie Schneider (Humphrey) had Peru State up 16-11.
 
The Wildcats would cut the lead to within two multiple times as they now trailed 19-17 late in the second set. Then a 6-3 run ended the second for the Bobcats as kills by Schneider and Miller helped win the set 25-20.
 
The tide turned in third set for Culver-Stockton as they were leading 10-8. The Bobcats would tie the game at 13 apiece after a kill by Mendick and some errors by the Wildcats. After a 3-0 run by the Wildcats the Bobcats went on a 3-1 run of their own as they trailed by one 17-16 after a service error from Culver-Stockton.
 
The Wildcats would pull away again as they were leading 20-16. The Bobcats then clawed their way back as they trailed by one 21-20. Culver-Stockton then pulled away again making the score 24-20. Peru State did not go down without a fight as kills by Miller and Mendick made the score 24-23.
 
Culver-Stockton won set three 25-23.
 
In the fourth set the Bobcats got off to a 5-1 lead after another ace from Peck. The Wildcats would tie the game at five and then it would be a back-and-forth affair for the early going of the fourth set.

Then a 4-0 run by the Wildcats had them with a four-point lead 13-9. For most of the fourth set Culver-Stockton would keep the Bobcats at bay. Late in the second set a 4-2 run by the Bobcats had them trail by one 19-18 after a kill by Mendick and an ace by Chantal Paniagua (Santo Domingo, D.R.)
 
The Bobcats would only score one more point in the set as they would lose 25-19.
 
The Wildcats and Bobcats then played in one of the most enthralling fifth sets of the season. Culver-Stockton started with a 5-3 lead, then a 7-0 run by Peru State had them with a 10-5 lead from kills by Schneider, Krise and Mendick as well as an ace by Paniagua.
 
Culver-Stockton would claw their way back into the set as 7-2 run of their own had the game tied at 12 apiece. Then both teams would trade points all the way up to 18-18. Kills by Miller, Schneider and Mendick ended the game 20-18. Mendick had the fitting final kill as Peru State won the set and the match 3-2.
 
Mendick led the way in kills with 18, while Krise finished with 12 and Miller had 11. Peck had five aces in the game, while Paniagua and Schneider each had two. Schneider had 48 assists while Mattie Nichols (Auburn) and Paniagua finished with three each.
 
Nichols led the way in digs with 24, Alyssa Bock (Plattsmouth) had 20 and Paniagua had 17.
 
Peru State returns home this Tuesday, October 4, for a match against William Penn. First serve is set for 6:00 p.m.