After dropping a pair of nail-biting sets to begin the match, the Buena Vista volleyball team fought all the way back to force the decisive fifth set during Thursday night's Iowa Conference Tournament semifinal match at second-seed Loras, but the Duhawks went on a roll midway through the final set to take the set, 15-9, and the match, 3-2.

Neither team was about to give in all night long.  BVU faced set point in the opening stanza, but consecutive kills by Loras evened things at 24-24.  An attack error by BVU gave Loras the lead, but the Beavers quickly tied things up again at 25-25 with a kill by Bardole.  A service error by BVU and a kill by the Duhawks gave Loras the opening set, 27-25.

The Beavers started strong in the second, going in front 7-2 before Loras used a huge rally by scoring eight of the next 10 points and take a 10-9 lead.  It was litterally back-and-forth the rest of the set with BVU clinging to a 23-21 lead late.  Again, consecutive kills by Loras as well as an attack error by the Beavers, put the Duhawks back in front 24-23.  Bardole's kill tied it at 24-24, but Liz Jendra turned in a pair of kills for Loras to send the Duhawks to a 26-24 victory.

BVU had seen enough and took charge in the third.  The Beavers blew open a 12-4 lead and cruised to a 25-12 win to avoid the sweep.  Much like the first two sets, neither team was able to build more than a two-point lead in the fourth until the Duhawks appeared to take control with a 19-15 lead.

The Beavers weren't about to see their season end, and they went on a critical run, clawing all the way back and getting a huge block by Barry and Mathews to tie things up at 22-22.  In a set that saw incredible rallies, Loras held match-point at 24-23, but the Beavers got three straight kills from Bardole to force the decisive final set.

BVU came out poised and scored the first two points and held a 4-2 lead early on.  Loras, however, found its stride and rolled of nine straight points to take a 10-4 lead.  BVU managed to hang tough and get as close as 12-8 late, but Loras then scored three of the final four points to close things out.

Bardole and Jade Schaap each posted a match-high 23 kills with Bardole adding 22 digs and Schaap 16.  Schaap surpasses 500 kills in the match, something that's only been twice in a single-season for BVU all-time (Bardole 614 and Schaap 549 in 2014).  Mathews and Serena Sandvig were next with six kills apiece, while Mathews also turned in a match-high seven total blocks.

Laura Barry chipped in with 53 assists and 17 digs on the night, while the reigning IIAC Defensive Performer of the Week, Sydnee Donnelli, set a career and school single-match record with 45 digs.

As a team, BVU posted a .180 attack percentage and held the Duhawks to only a .139 mark.

The Duhawks (22-12) will advance into Saturday's IIAC Tournament Championship match at top-seed Wartburg, which swept fourth-seed Coe, 3-0, in the other semifinal.

Buena Vista sees its season come to an end at 18-16.