FARGO, N.D. – The North Dakota State volleyball team battled back from a 2-0 deficit before falling short against Omaha, 3-2, on Saturday night at Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse.

After the Mavericks (4-10, 3-1 Summit) grabbed the first two sets, 25-21, and 25-21, the Bison (10-5, 2-2 Summit) fought back in the third frame with a 5-1 run to steal a 15-11 advantage. NDSU continued to surge assembling a 7-2 run capped off by a block from Alexis Boling and Ally Barth to make the score 22-14. The Bison won the third set, 25-19.

The two teams continued to battle into the fourth set that featured a match-high 18 tie scores and 11 lead changes. NDSU was able to put together four straight points to steal the lead, 20-18, following an attack error. The Mavericks pushed back with three straight points of the their own to regain the edge, 21-20, after a service ace from Rachel Fairbanks. The Bison responded to close the set on a 5-2 run to win the frame, 25-23.

Omaha captured the momentum early the fifth set running out to a 7-1 advantage after an attack error. The Bison attempted one final rally after back-to-back kills from Lauren Jansen and Boling to trim the deficit down to four, 11-7. However, Omaha closed the set on a 4-0 run to seal the set, 15-7, and the match, 3-0.

Ali Hinze paced the Bison posting her second straight double-double with a team-best 15 kills and match-high 15 digs. The Maple Grove, Minn., native also surpassed the 1,000 career digs mark and has totaled 1,009 over four seasons at NDSU.

Jansen recorded a season-high 15 kills, while Boling (11) and Arianna Blohm (10) also reached double figures in kills. Kelley Johnson handed out a match-high 48 assists with eight digs and Taylor Quan chipped in 12 digs of her own.

NDSU will be back in action at South Dakota State on Thursday. First serve is set for 7:00 p.m.