Box Score (.pdf) | Box Score

FORT WAYNE, Ind. - Meredith Farkas put down a team-high and career-high 14 kills and Shari Bernhardt concluded her fantastic career with a match-high 22 digs, but IPFW hit .267 as a team leading the Mastodons to a 3-1 (19-25, 20-25, 25-15, 19-25) victory Saturday evening in IUPUI’s regular-season finale.

The loss put IUPUI’s record at 15-16 on the season and 8-10 in Summit League play, while IPFW improved to 21-8 overall and 14-4 in conference action.

The Jags got off to a great start scoring their first six points off kills, including three from Bethany Fogler, resulting in a 6-5 lead. However, just as IUPUI looked to be clicking offensively, five Jaguars errors helped the Mastodons catapult on top, 15-8, forcing head coach Steve Payne to burn his second timeout of the set. The Jags closed within five points twice, but that would be the closest they reached as IPFW opened with a 25-19 opening-set win.

The Jaguars managed to remain within striking distance for most of the second set until a small run from IPFW that was aided by a trio of IUPUI miscues allowed the Mastodons to turn a tie score into a four-point cushion, 19-15. A block by Kelsey Hoefer and Kortni Wright followed by a kill from Moriah Fair closed what was a five-point deficit to three points, 22-19, but an IPFW kill preceded an ace down the stretch securing a 25-20 second-set win for the home team.

IUPUI went to Hoefer early in set three and she delivered three kills helping the Jaguars claim an 11-7 lead. With the lead still at four points, 14-10, Fogler and Fair each scored two points helping the Jags win six of the next seven points widening their lead to 20-11. From that point, IUPUI cruised to a 25-15 third-set win.

Needing a win in set four, the Jaguars instead found themselves in trouble trailing 11-7 midway through the set. Payne burned both tis timeouts looking to halt IPFW’s run, but Emily Spencer continued to perform at a high level and a Jesse Manwaring kill ended the set securing a 25-19 win.

Fair posted a kill-dig double-double with 13 kills and 13 digs in the loss, while Alexis Meeks added 44 assists and 11 digs in defeat.

Bernhardt’s Saturday night total gave her 686 digs this season, the most in a season in school history, and concluded a great career that saw her name etched in the IUPUI record books.