SPU-Fresno Pacific box score, play-by-play (HTML)
        SPU-Cal State San Bernardino box score, play-by-play (HTML)
 
SEATTLE – A bounceback in their opening match didn't carry over into their second one on Friday.
 
Even so, the Seattle Pacific Falcons liked much of what they saw in their first two volleyball contests of the year.
 
Gabby Oddo and Symone Tran started the season with double-doubles, and Hailey Gaines delivered seven of SPU's 17 service aces on Friday morning in a four-game season-opening victory against Fresno Pacific at the Falcon-Wildcat Invitational.
 
Scores in Brougham Pavilion were 24-26, 25-13, 25-17, 28-26.
 
The 17 aces came within one of the school single-match record of 18, set on Oct. 21, 1993, against Montana State Billings. Last year, the most SPU had in any match was 11.
 
In the final match of the day, Oddo had 11 kills, giving her 30 for the day, and Tran racked up another 25 assists, but No. 11-ranked Cal State San Bernardino had the upper hand most of the way in a three-game sweep, 25-17, 25-17, 25-18.
 
"I think we're doing some really great things," said head coach Abbie Wright, beginning her second year in charge. "A win is great for your confidence, but a loss is a good way to pick up on some things you need to work on.
 
"We played two great teams. We'll be taking the lessons we learned and move forward to Saturday."
 




Falcons 3, Fresno Pacific 1
Junior outside hitter slammed 19 kills and came up with 12 digs. She hit. 273 for the match, added three aces and four block assists.
 
Senior setter Tran (Portland, Ore.) recorded 38 assists and 19 digs, and added four aces.
 
 

Gaines, a grad student who transferred to SPU this year after playing previously at Concordia Irvine, had more aces in Friday's match than she had in her entire career with the Eagles. In three season there, she totaled six. She also logged five kills and two blocks on Friday.
 
Senior libero Amanda Ganete (Hillsboro, Ore.) led the way with 21 digs.
 
The Falcons had a 21-17 lead in Game 1, and also had a game point and the serve at 24-23. But Fresno Pacific (0-1) put the last three points on the board.
 
Seattle Pacific took charge of Game 2 early, running off six straight points for a 6-1 advantage. Another six-point surge built the lead to 14-5.
 
Down 12-11 in the third game, the Falcons ran off seven points in a row, six of those with Tran serving. Her first three serves of that rotation all went for aces.
 
 

The Sunbirds led for most of Game 4, and had a chance to force a deciding fifth game with a 24-23 lead. A kill by senior middle blocker Shaun Crespi (Camarillo, Calif.) tied it at 24-24, and SPU gained a match point at 25-24 on a tip by Crespi.
 
Fresno fought that off and eventually went up, 26-25. A kill by Oddo tied it at 26-26, and a double-hit call on FPU gave Seattle Pacific a 27-26 lead and a second try at match point. Oddo ended it with a serve that the Sunbirds dug up, but ultimately could not get back over the net.
 
"We've been working on serving and passing a lot," Wright said. "It's cool to see thing that you work on pay off. We put an emphasis on things we can control, and that's something we can control."
 
Cal State San Bernardino 3, Falcons 0
The Coyotes (3-0) had the upper hand throughout the match. Seattle Pacific (1-1) came as close as four late in the opening game at 19-15 before CSSB pulled away.
 
San Bernardino had a four-point lead midway through Game 2 at 15-11, then went on a 7-1 scoring run to take command at 22-12.
 
In the third game, the Coyotes were up 16-14 when they put four straight on the board, effectively putting the match out of reach.
 
 

Falcons sophomore middle blocker Gabi Stegemoller played error-free with five kills on 12 attacks for a .417 percentage. Oddo again topped .200 hitting, finishing at .219 (11 kills-4 errors-32 attacks).
 
"It was fun to play a really seasoned team and a team that doesn't crack very easily," Wright said, adding that the key takeaway from a contest against such a national-caliber opponent "is how consistent we have to play and the lessons and skills we have to work on to execute a game plan. We're not there yet, but we can get there."
 
 
NCAA WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL
Falcon-Wildcat Invitational
Friday, Aug. 23, 2018
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
 
Seattle Pacific 3, Fresno Pacific 1
 
Game scores – 24-26, 25-13, 25-17, 28-26.
 
Service aces – FPU 6 (Dobenecker 2), SPU 17 (Gaines 7).
Kills – FPU 50 (Bodziak 12), SPU 51 (Oddo 19, Crespi 12).
Assists – FPU 48 (Dobenecker 33), SPU 47 (Tran 38).
Digs – FPU 71 (Dobenecker 15), SPU 63 (Ganete 21, Tran 19, Oddo 12).
Block assists / solo – FPU 4 / 0 solo (Kennedy 2 / 0 solo), SPU 14 / 1 solo (Oddo 4 / 0 solo, Crespi 4 / 0 solo).
Hitting (kills-errors-attacks) – FPU 50-22-149--.188 (Bock 10-3-21—.333), SPU 51-16-144--.243 (Crespi 12-5-24—.292).
Attendance – 39.
 
 
(No. 11) Cal State San Bernardino 3, Seattle Pacific 0
 
Game scores – 25-17, 25-17, 25-18.
 
Service aces – CSSB 3 (DeHoog 2), SPU 3 (3 players with 1).
Kills – CSSB 51 (Cardoza 14, Dominique 14), SPU 28 (Oddo 11).
Assists – CSSB 50 (DeHoog 48), SPU 28 (Tran 25).
Digs – CSSB 47 (Cardoza 12), SPU 31 (Ganete 10).
Block assists / solo – CSSB 6 / 0 solo (Dominique 2 / 0 solo), SPU 10 / 0 solo (Crespi 3 / 0 solo).
Hitting (kills-errors-attacks) – CSSB 51-16-108--.324 (Dominique 11-8-13—.846), SPU 28-13-990—.167 (Stegemoller 5-0-12—.417).
Attendance – 58.
 
 
Next match
Seattle Pacific vs. Metro State
Saturday, 4:00 p.m.
Nicholson Pavilion / Ellensburg, Wash.