Box score, play-by-play
MONMOUTH, Ore. – It wasn't just what they did on the volleyball court Saturday night. It was how they did it that had head coach
Chris Johnson all smiles.
Lindsey Wodrich and
Shelby Swanson both posted double-doubles, and
Anna Herold came up with 24 digs in just three games, leading No. 23 Seattle Pacific to a Great Northwest Athletic Conference sweep of Western Oregon.
Scores in WOU's New P.E. Building were 25-21, 25-21, 25-20.
The Falcons (16-5, 10-2 GNAC) retained a first-place tie in the standings as Alaska Anchorage improved to 10-2 by sweeping Simon Fraser in Alaska.
SPU has won six straight matches against Western Oregon (9-8, 8-5 GNAC), the last four of them in sweeps.
“You always love to win in three. But I felt like not only did we win, we won the right way, and that was nice to see,” Johnson said. “We've been talking the last few days about making good choices as hitters and trying to make the other team earn the points they get and not give them free points. And they've really implemented that.”
Senior outside hitter Wodrich (Richland, Wash./Richland HS) put down 14 kills and came up with 16 digs and hit a solid .263. That gives her six consecutive double-doubles, 12 this season and 31 for her career.
Junior setter Swanson (Kennewick, Wash./Kamiakin HS) had 32 assists and 15 digs. She has five this season and 15 for her career.
Herold's 24 digs pushed her past 400 for the season (411) and 2,100 for career (2,113). She is now averaging 5.55 per game this season, which very well could push her back into the top 20 nationally, having come into this week at 22
nd with a 5.38 per-game average.
Junior outside hitter
Cailin Fellows (Edmonds, Wash./Edmonds-Woodway HS) went for 12 kills. Sophomore middle blocker
Nikki Lowell (Claremont, Calif.) nine kills and hit a team-leading .294.
After leading for all but a 3-3 tie in Game 1, the Falcons found themselves down 13-9 midway through Game 2. A 7-1 scoring run, four of those points earned while Swanson had the serve, gave them a 16-14 edge. Western Oregon managed to tie it five times after that, the last time at 20-20, before SPU scored five of the final six points, clinching the game on a Wodrich kill.
An 8-1 surge early in the third game put Seattle Pacific in control at 10-3. The Wolves stormed back, cutting a 22-16 lead to 22-20 with four consecutive points. But that was all they got, as a tip by Fellows and back-to-back kills by Wodrich sealed it.
SPU hit .238 for the game (44 kills, 13 errors on 130 attacks), and limited Western Oregon to .171 (40-15-146).
“To have 130 swings and just 13 errors is great,” Johnson said. “We did a great job right out of the gate of hitting our serve targets and getting (the Wolves) out of their system.”
Seattle Pacific kept Western Oregon outside hitter Danielle Reese in check, limiting her to 11 kills and .061 hitting. Reese hammered 16 kills during the earlier match this season in Brougham Pavilion.
The Falcons close out their 2011 home schedule with three matches this coming week, starting with Monday Night Volleyball against Montana State Billings at 7 p.m.
NCAA WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL
Saturday, October 22, 2011
New P.E. Building / Monmouth, Ore.
(No. 23) Seattle Pacific 3, Western Oregon 0
Game scores – 25-21, 25-21, 25-20.
Service aces – SPU 3 (
Shelby Swanson 2), WOU 2 (Corynn Kopra 2).
Kills – SPU 44 (
Lindsey Wodrich 14,
Cailin Fellows 12), WOU 40 (Danielle Reese 11, Samantha Ward 10).
Assists – SPU 41 (Swanson 32), WOU 37 (LesLyne Satele 32).
Digs – SPU 75 (
Anna Herold 24, Wodrich 16, Swanson 15,
Paige Hoffman 10), WOU 65 (Cally Young 17).
Blocks (total / solo) – SPU 6 / 0 (Hoffman 2 / 0,
Nikki Lowell 2 / 0), WOU 4 / 0 (4 players with 1 / 0).
Hitting (kills-errors-attacks) – SPU 44-13-130--.238 (Lowell 9-4-17--.294, Wodrich 14-4-38--.263), WOU 40-15-146--.171 (Becky Blees 7-1-16--.375, Krissi Kemper 7-1-19--.316).
Attendance – 227.
Records – Seattle Pacific 16-5, 10-2 GNAC. Western Oregon 9-8, 8-5 GNAC.
Next match – Montana State Billings at Seattle Pacific, Monday, Brougham Pavilion, 7:00 p.m.
