By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications
SALEM, Ore. -- Jaiden Mason (Fr., S/OPP, Charlotte, NC/Charlotte Christian School) of Willamette University finished the match with a triple-double, but Whitman College built a 2-0 lead on its way to a 3-1 win over the Bearcats in a Northwest Conference volleyball match on Friday, Oct. 20 at Cone Field House. The Blues were victorious, 25-18, 26-24, 15-25, 25-15.
Mason earned 14 kills, 18 assists and 14 digs for the Bearcats, as she registered her first triple-double at the collegiate level. Mason nearly had a triple-double in each match last weekend, as the Bearcats went 2-0. She missed a triple by one kill against Linfield College in a 3-1 win on Oct. 13 and missed by one dig at Pacific University in a 3-0 sweep on Oct. 14.
Against Whitman, she found the triple-double, accomplishing the feat in the first three sets. She hit .314 during the match. Kendall Fox (So., OH, Dupont, WA/Steilacoom HS) added nine kills for the Bearcats, while Lauren Stiles (So., OH, Altadena, CA/Flintridge Preparatory School) contributed eight kills and just one attacking error. Stiles achieved a .280 hitting percentage. Elena Vasquez (Fr., LIB, Kingston, WA/North Kitsap HS) topped all players with 23 digs. Fox finished with 11 digs and Stiles had nine.
Kunani Tuttle (So., S/OPP, Anahola, HI/Kappa HS) added a spark for the Bearcats at the start of the third set, when she entered the match for the first time and helped WU build a 10-0 lead. She registered 11 assists during the set and provided 14 assists for the match.
Top hitters for Whitman were Codie Conching with 14 kills and Kalli Dickey with 13 kills. Lara Temel added seven kills and just one attacking error on 14 attacks for a .429 hitting percentage. Temel also provided a match-high seven total blocks. The Blues accumulated 13.0 team total blocks compared to 4.0 for the Bearcats.
Anna Dawson supplied 36 assists for Whitman, while Cherokee Washington led the Blues with 18 digs. Conching was credited with 15 digs and Dawson earned 14.
The first set was tied at 6-6 before the Blues scored three consecutive points, ending with a service ace by Conching. Whitman eventually increased its advantage to 14-8 with a 5-0 run that featured three kills by Dickey.
Willamette was unable to rally for the lead, but got as close as two points four times between 14-12 and 18-16. A kill lby Arianna Khan (Fr., OPP, Yuba, CA/River Valley HS) created the final two-point margin, but the Blues answered with three points in a row to open a 7-2 run, as Whitman won the set, 25-18.
The second set was highly contested with 10 ties and four lead changes. The Blues owned a 7-2 lead after a service ace by Temel. Willamette tied the score three times before moving in front, 11-10, on an ace by Stiles. WU went on to hold a 17-14 advantage after back-to-back kills by Larsen Fellows (Jr./So., OH, Homer, AK/Homer HS).
Later, an attacking error by the Blues gave the Bearcats a 22-19 lead. A kill and a block by Temel quickly pulled Whitman within 22-21, and a service ace by Conching tied the set. The next two points went to the Bearcats on kills from Khan and Stiles, but Dawson countered with a kill for Whitman to reduce the lead to 24-23. A kill by Washington on an "over" that Willamette couldn't control, plus an attacking error by the Bearcats and a kill by Conching resulted in a 26-24 win for Whitman.
"Whitman really played well tonight," Willamette Head Coach Tom Shoji said. "It shows if you aren't ready to play, you will not be successful. Every play is important and we didn't understand how that can make a huge difference in the outcome of a match. One play can change the momentum in a match so quickly! We learned a valuable lesson tonight."
Tuttle seemed to bring renewed effort to the Bearcats in the third set. She assisted a kill by Emma Liband (Sr., MH, Sandpoint, ID/Sandpoint HS) to start the set, and then Mason pounded a kill on an overpass for a 2-0 lead. Tuttle provided assists on each of the next four rallies as the Bearcats added four more kills for a 6-0 lead. Mason tacked on another kill, assisted by Stiles, and the Blues committed an attacking error. Fox added two kills, assisted by Stiles and then Tuttle, as Willamette's lead increased to 10-0.
A combo block by Sierra Myers and Elyse Benavides of Whitman ended the run. The Blues reduced the lead to six points on three occasions. Willamette owned a 15-7 advantage and tacked on a 6-0 run to take charge. The Bearcats took the set, 25-15.
Willamette opened the fourth set with a 4-1 lead, but the next nine points went to Whitman, including two kills by Conching, two kills from Temel and two aces by Megan Henry. The Blues led the rest of the way, although the Bearcats reduced the margin to 18-15 on a combo block by Liband and Dreux Bertolucci (Jr., OH, Cottonwood, CA/West Valley HS/Shasta College). Whitman recorded the final seven points of the match.
The Bearcats will play Whitworth University at Cone Field House on Saturday, Oct. 21. Match time is set for 6 p.m. (PDT).
