Bemidji State Women’s Volleyball 8-0, Third Best Start in Program History

Some say perfection isn’t attainable, but that if you chase perfection, you can catch excellence.

BSU women’s volleyball has managed to do both so far this season, sporting a perfect 8-0 record. It’s their best start since 1988 when they won their 14 contests to begin that year, and is ranked third behind their only perfect season in 1971 when they went 10-0.

But the Beavers aren’t just winning—they’re dominating, having won 18 straight sets dating back to Aug. 29 and only dropping four sets thus far this season. It’s a massive turnaround for a program that’s only won eight-or-more matches in a season twice in the last 14 years.

“It feels good to see the work we’ve put in finally kind of translate on the scoresheet,” said senior hitter Ava Athman. “I think we’ve been working hard through all the adversity these three years, and it’s just nice to see that pay off.”

She continued, “We keep saying we want to play Beaver volleyball, kind of focusing on ourselves and what we know we can do. And that’s translating into the score, obviously, but we’re trying to just stay calm and not worry about the score too much, just do what we know how to do.”

The 8-0 start is also the best in program history by a first-year head coach. Hahni Johnson, who made the jump from assistant to interim after former head coach Erika Bute departed for Augustana in late June, has not tasted defeat at the helm for Bemidji State.

“We were set up for success with the spring that we had with our previous head coach,” said Johnson. “And then just these girls, I think, have responded very well and they’re working really hard for the program, and not just for me, for each other especially. And I think that’s what makes a difference right now.”

She added, “I would say on the court our biggest thing is our serve-and-pass game and then our decision making. That was something last year we really wanted to grow in, we just had a very young team. And so this year people [are] a little older, having more experience, having good decisions on the court has gone a long way for us.”

Bemidji State begins NSIC play this Friday with a trip to Minot, North Dakota for the Battle of the Beavers before heading to Bismarck, North Dakota to take on UMary, whom the Beavers already beat this season in what was their closest match to date, going the full five sets.

“We’re just very focused on one match at a time,” Johnson said. “Not looking too far ahead, not looking behind at what we just did. We’re focused on this next game.”

“[There’s a] lot of ranked teams through the conference season,” added Athman. “I’m excited because those games get really competitive and it’s a fun environment to play in. And we’re really lucky to play in one of the best Division II conferences [in the country], so I’m just grateful to be a part of that.”