By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications
SALEM, Ore. -- Arianna Khan (Fr., OPP, Yuba, CA/River Valley HS) of Willamette University pounded out a match-high 18 kills, and Jaiden Mason (Fr., S/OPP, Charlotte, NC/Charlotte Christian School) provided 42 assists and 23 digs, as the Bearcats defeated University of Puget Sound, 3-1, in a Northwest Conference match at Cone Field House on Friday, Sept. 29. The Bearcats rolled to a 25-14 win in the first set, but Puget Sound took the second set, 25-21. Willamette won a very competitive third set, 30-28, and closed out the match with a 25-21 victory in the fourth set.
The Bearcats improved to 5-8 overall, 2-3 in the Northwest Conference. Puget Sound fell to 5-7 overall, 2-3 in the NWC.
Khan was the only Willamette player with double-digit kills, but it was still a tremendous team effort by the Bearcats. Dreux Bertolucci (Jr., OH, Cottonwood, CA/West Valley HS/Shasta College) earned nine kills, Mason added eight and Emma Liband (Sr., MH, Sandpoint, ID/Sandpoint HS) finished with seven. A total of seven Bearcats recorded at least five kills on the night and four hit over .200, led by Mason at .353.
Both teams battled on defense. Elena Vasquez (Fr., DS/OH, Kingston, WA/North Kitsap HS) contributed a team-high 27 digs for the Bearcats. Mason's 23 digs were next, while Bertolucci supplied 16 digs and Kendall Fox (So., OH, Dupont, WA/Steilacoom HS) was credited with 13 digs.
Rita Dexter topped Puget Sound with 11 kill. Kristen Miguel achieved a match-high 28 digs to go along with 10 kills for the Loggers. Also reaching double-digit totals on defense were Rachael Garrison with 17 digs, and both Alli Reviglio and Shelby Kantner with 13 digs. Moira McVicar registered 36 assists and was one of three Loggers with two service aces.
Willamette held a 58-49 advantage in kills, but the Loggers finished with 9.0 team total blocks compared to 3.0 blocks for the Bearcats. Melanie Siacotos led Puget Sound with one block solo and four block assists. The Loggers were credited with eight service aces and five serving errors, while WU finished with six aces and seven errors.
"We played maybe our best match of the year in terms of intensity," Willamette Head Coach Tom Shoji noted. "We worked extremely hard throughout the match! We didn't lose any confidence when things didn't go our way. That's a huge step forward for us."
Control of the match stood in the balance as the third set became a battle of two teams playing with determination. The set featured 14 ties and eight lead changes.
Willamette led 16-13, but Puget Sound scored six unanswered points to move in front, 19-16. Five of the points were earned with McVicar serving. Willamette countered the run, and then took a 20-19 advantage on a kill by Mason. Puget Sound also trailed 21-20, but the Loggers won three consecutive rallies for a 23-21 lead.
Two points later, the Loggers led 24-22, but back-to-back kills by Madison Haley (So., MH, Truckee, CA/Tahoe Truckee HS) tied the set. The teams were tied four more times before the Bearcats used a kill by Khan and a service ace from Bertolucci to win the set, 30-28.
During the third set, Willamette successfully fended off four set-points for the Loggers. The Bearcats had their first set-point at 27-26, but Puget Sound tallied the next two points. WU scored the final three points of the set.
"Everyone did a great job tonight," Shoji said. "But boy did Jaiden Mason play so steady. Arianna Khan did a nice job all night and Elena Vasquez had some critical digs. This was a great team effort."
The first set opened with plenty of power from the Bearcats. Willamette surged out to a 7-1 lead, and later went on a 9-0 run to extend the margin to 17-5. The Bearcats amassed 15 kills and a .300 hitting percentage during the opening set, and cruised to a 25-14 win. Fox and Khan each provided four kills.
Puget Sound recovered from the first set to edge out Willamette in the second set. The Bearcats led 11-9 on a kill by Khan, but Puget Sound gained a 12-11 lead on a combo block by Dexter and McVicar. The teams wre tied at 18-18 a bit later, before the Loggers pushed in front with a 5-0 run, incluidng a two kills by Miguel and a service ace from Kantner. The Beacats pulled within 23-21 on a service ace by Lauren Kaaialii (Fr., OH, Honolulu, HI/Sacred Hearts Academy), but Puget Sound tallied the next two points for a 25-21 victory to tie the match.
After Willamette prevailed in the exciting third set, the Loggers earned an early 3-1 lead in the fourth set. WU scored five points in a row for a 6-3 edge, but Puget Sound answered with a 5-0 run of its own to claim an 8-6 margin. The Bearcats took a 12-8 lead with a 6-0 outsburst that ended with two kills by Khan.
WU eventually gained a 16-10 advantage, and also led 18-12. Puget Sound fought back to within 19-17 following two consecutive kills by Madie Lage, but Fox followed with a kill for the Bearcats. The Loggers never got closer than three points the rest of the way. A kill by Khan provided the final point of the match with the Bearcats winning the fourth set, 25-21.
The Bearcats will remain at home to take on Pacific Lutheran University on Saturday (Sept. 30) at 5 p.m. (PDT). The Lutes improved to 10-3 on the season and to 4-1 in the NWC after winning 3-1 at Pacific University on Friday.
