By Robert McKinney, Athletics Communications Director
SALEM, Ore. -- Willamette University rallied from a 2-0 deficit by winning the final three sets to remain undefeated in Northwest Conference volleyball action with a 3-2 victory over Pacific Lutheran University on Friday, Oct. 2 at Cone Field House. The Bearcats, 6-0 in the NWC, improved to 10-4 on the season. PLU fell to 8-6 overall, 2-3 in the NWC.
The Bearcats won, 21-25, 15-25, 25-19, 25-17, 16-14.
Sarah Fincher (Sr., OH, Reno, NV/Bishop Manogue HS/Southwest Baptist Univ.) pounded out a match-high 19 kills for Willamette. Lindsey Compton (Sr., OH/S, Portola, CA/Portola HS/Univ. of Hartford) added 14 kills and Alexa Dowdell (Jr., MH/OPP, Mililani, HI/Maryknoll HS) finished with 10.
Willamette took a 5-1 lead in the fifth set after a 4-0 run that ended with back-to-back kills by Fincher. PLU scored the next six points, including five with Kylai Cooley serving. WU countered with a 3-0 run for an 8-7 advantage.
Pacific Lutheran scored the next point, but a kill by Emma Liband (So., MH, Sandpoint, ID/Sandpoint HS), a service ace by Taylor Lum (Jr., MH/OH, Honolulu, HI/Maryknoll HS) and an attacking error by the Lutes gave the Bearcats an 11-8 margin.
The Lutes pulled within a single point three times, including 13-12 on a kill by Michaela Edgers. Compton provided a kill to give the Bearcats a 14-12 lead. Kills by Gabrielle Alley and Edgers allowed PLU to tie the score.
On the next rally, Dowdell sent an attack downward off a Pacific Lutheran block attempt to put WU in front, 15-14. The Bearcats added an attacking error by the Lutes' Roshel Muzzall to win the match after taking the set, 16-14.
The Willamette offense got better as the match went on, improving from .146 and .207 hitting percentages in the first two sets to hitting .213 in the third set, .342 in the fourth and .368 in the fifth.
Overall, the Bearcats earned a .241 hitting percentage, while limiting Pacific Lutheran to .164. WU finished with a 62-60 edge in kills, but had 10 fewer attacking errors. Both teams blocked well, but Willamette recorded 12.0 team total blocks, compared to 8.0 blocks for PLU.
Liband of WU led all players with 11 block assists. Edgers recorded six block assists for the Lutes.
PLU's top attacker was Muzzall with 18 kills. Edgers and Chloe Epker each recorded 11 kills for the Lutes.
The two liberos -- Kaylen Higa (Fr., LIB/DS, Mililani, HI/Punahou School) of Willamette and Cooley of PLU -- put on a defensive show. Cooley led all players with 31 digs, while Higa registered 27 for the Bearcats.
Willamette's setters, Compton and Tynan Gable (So., S, Woodinville, WA/Woodinville HS) each earned 26 assists. Kendle Valade-Nunez, the setter for the Lutes, amassed 50 assists.
Pacific Lutheran played two strong sets to open the match. In the first set, the Lutes built a 6-2 lead and later held a 16-10 advantage following a kill by Cooley. WU pulled as close as 19-17 on a kill by Gable, but the Lutes scored three consecutive points on their way to a 25-21 win.
WU fell behind 5-1 and 10-4 in the second set. The Lutes also led 16-7 before taking the set, 25-15. PLU hit .344 during the set with 14 kills and just three attacking errors.
The Bearcats gained momentum in the third set, starting with a 5-4 lead on a combo block by Dowdell and Liband. It was Willamette's first lead since winning the first point of the first set. WU eventually held a 10-7 edge, but PLU tied the score at 11-11 on a kill by Edgers.
A service error gave Willamette a 12-11 lead, and the Bearcats remained in front during the rest of the set. Even so, the Bearcats held a slim 19-17 margin before a 3-0 run, including kills by Gable and Fincher, created a 22-17 lead. WU won the set, 25-19.
Willamette played well in the fourth set, taking leads of 6-2 and 15-7 following kills by Lum. PLU pulled within 15-11, but Willamette used a 5-2 run to extend the margin to seven points at 20-13. The Bearcats forced a fifth set with a 25-17 victory.
WU plays seven of its next eight matches on the road, beginning at Whitworth University on Friday, Oct. 9. Match time in Spokane, Washington, is set for 7 p.m. (PDT).
