Bentley University

WALTHAM, Mass. – The No. 22 Bentley volleyball team opened its 2026 season with a 3-0 (25-23, 25-22, 25-14) loss against Grand Valley State in the first day of the Sandy Hoffman Memorial Tournament Thursday night. The match was more closely contested than a typical sweep.

The Falcons (0-1) were down 17-12 in the opening set, but Sasha Luzina served Bentley to a 5-0 run that tied the score. That run included a couple of aces by Luzina. Grand Valley held set point, 24-21, but it committed an error, and Lauren Hallas followed by delivering a service ace to bring Bentley to within a point. However, a Bentley error accounted for the Lakers' 25^th point.

Early in the second set, Bentley rallied for four consecutive points to take an 11-9 lead. Karina May served up a couple of aces during the run. The Lakers reclaimed the lead at 13-12, and their advantage slowly grew to 23-17. A kill by Olivia Alcante cooled Grand Valley's run. The Lakers then committed an error, and Alicante and Julia Kleinle put away consecutive kills to bring the Falcons to within 23-22. Grand Valley was ultimately able to fend off Bentley's late run in the second set.

As a team, the Falcons totaled seven service aces in the match. Tory Vitko, like Luzina and May, finished with two aces.

The second day of the Sandy Hoffman Memorial Tournament, includes Bentley vs. Central Missouri at 3:30 p.m. Friday.