By Timothy Walsh, Athletics Communications Writer
SALEM, Ore. -- Willamette University scored the final five points of the match, fending off three match points in the fifth set to defeat Whitworth University in a Northwest Conference volleyball match on Friday, Nov. 6 at Cone Field House.
The Bearcats won the match, 3-2, to improve to 14-9 overall, 10-5 in the NWC. The Pirates, who have already clinched the NWC title, fell to 18-7 on the season, 12-3 in the NWC.
Willamette won the match, 22-25, 25-21, 25-21, 16-25, 16-14, but the Bearcats trailed 14-11 in the fifth set before starting their match-ending run.
Three consecutive attacking errors by Whitworth knotted the match at 14, and the Bearcats took a 15-14 lead on a kill by Sarah Fincher (Sr., OH, Reno, NV/Bishop Manogue HS/Southwest Baptist Univ.).
Following a Whitworth timeout, Lindsey Compton (Sr., OH/S, Portola, CA/Portola HS/Univ. of Hartford) and Emma Liband (So., MH, Sandpoint, ID/Sandpoint HS) combined to block Cassandra Mendoza's kill attempt and finish Willamette's comeback.
Fincher led Willamette with 21 kills and hit .309 for the match. Alexa Dowdell (Jr., MH/OPP, Mililani, HI/Maryknoll HS) added 17 kills and a .457 hitting percentage.
Libero Kaylen Higa (Fr., LIB/DS, Mililani, HI/Punahou School) of Willamette recorded a match-high 27 digs, while Compton supplied 24 assists, 21 digs, and four block assists. Dowdell contributed 21 digs, and Liband recorded 12 total blocks.
Cassandra Mendoza topped Whitworth with 17 kills. Nicole Leonard earned 15 kills for the Pirates. The Pirates' libero, Mallorie Schoesler nearly matched Higa by earning 26 digs. Maddye Dinsmore provided Whitworth with 56 assists and 22 digs.
Whitworth took control midway through the opening set, scoring four straight points on kills from Dinsmore, Mendoza, and Shawna Korshavn to take a 19-14 lead. A Mendoza service error and a Whitworth attacking error pulled the Bearcats within 23-21, but Willamette could get no closer, and the Pirates clinched a 25-22 win.
A tight second set feature eight ties and three lead changes, but with the score tied at 21, back-to-back kills by Fincher put Willamette on top for good. A Pirate attacking error followed by a bad set gave the Bearcats a 25-21 victory.
In the third set, Willamette surged out to an 11-3 advantage, with Fincher, Dowdell, Compton, Taylor Lum (Jr., MH/OH, Honolulu HI, Maryknoll HS) and Riley Fawcett (Jr., OH, Normandy Park, WA/John F. Kennedy HS) all recording kills during the run.
Whitworth countered with a 9-2 spurt to close within 19-18, but the Bearcats scored six of the set's final nine points, closing out another 25-21 win with a Fincher kill.
Willamette grabbed an early 6-2 lead in the fourth set, but eight consecutive Whitworth points – five of which came on Bearcat attacking errors – gave the Pirates a lead they would not relinquish. Though Willamette got as close as 15-11, another 8-0 Whitworth spurt all but sealed the set.
For the match, the Pirates earned 65 kills, compared to 53 kills for the Bearcats. However, Whitworth committed 35 attacking errors, while Willamette had just 26.
The Bearcats will wrap up their most successful season since 2004 on Saturday, Nov. 7, against Whitman College at Cone Field House. Prior to the match, Willamette will honor its four seniors: Compton, Fincher, Macy Hayashi (OH, Hilo, HI/Waiakea HS), and Alexa Becker (OH, El Dorado Hills, CA/Oak Ridge HS). The match is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. (PST).
