Box score, play-by-play (HTML)
 
SEATTLE – What the offense started, the defense finished.
 
Gabby Oddo put 12 kills onto the floor and had her second .300 hitting night of the season, and the Seattle Pacific Falcons came up with nine points on blocks – including four of the last five points – along with 11 service aces to sweep past Western Oregon in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference volleyball match.
 
Scores in Brougham Pavilion on Thursday night were 25-18, 25-21, 25-20.
 
SPU (4-6, 2-1 GNAC) has won back-to-back matches for the first time this season, having come from behind for a four-game victory at Simon Fraser last Saturday night.
 
"Their confidence is in a good spot," head coach Abbie Wright said. "Can we maintain a high level of play and maintain our composure? The good teams are those that can do it night after night.
 
"We're going to enjoy this, but we have a tough match in two days."
 
 

Junior outside hitter Oddo finished with a .310 percentage (12 kills-3 errors-29 attacks). Joining her in the .300 neighborhood was sophomore middle blocker Gabi Stegemoller at .385 (7-2-13).
 
Senior middle blocker Shaun Crespi had seven block assists, getting her hands on the last three in a row to help Seattle Pacific clinch the match. Crespi combined with Hailey Gaines on the first one to make it 23-20, then with Jaeden Hooker to make it 24-20, and finally with Gaines again for 25-20.
 
Oddo, senior setter Symone Tran, and senior libero Amanda Ganete each delivered three of SPU's 11 aces.
 




With just a few exceptions, the Falcons led for most of the night.
 
Down 6-5 in the opening game, they ran off five points in a row to go up 10-6, and WOU never came closer than three.
 
The second game was tied at 7-7 when Seattle Pacific put together a 10-2 burst for a seemingly commanding 17-9 advantage. It was 20-12 when the Wolves strung together seven in a row to climb within one. But the Falcons never let them get back into a tie or move in front.
 
Another Western Oregon rally wiped out a 19-14 SPU lead in Game 3, leaving it deadlocked at 19-19. The Falcons yielded just one more point the rest of the way while putting six of their own on the board – including the four blocks.
 
"We executed really well what our game plan was," Wright said. "We worked through the moments when Western Oregon was relentless – I knew they would come back. They're a well-organized team. But we managed the little things well and going point-for-point."
 
BY THE NUMBERS
-- SPU's two highest blocking totals of the season have come in the last two matches: 13 at Simon Fraser last Saturday, and now nine more on Thursday.
-- Of those, Shaun Crespi has factored into 15, with 14 block assists and one solo.
-- The 11 service aces marked the second time this season that the Falcons have hit double-digits. The opened the year with 17 in a four-game win against Fresno Pacific, just one shy of the single-match record.
 

-- Redshirt senior opposite Hailey Gaines collected her 100^th career dig. She'll have a chance to reach triple digits for career blocks on Saturday, as her four against Western Oregon put her at 99.
-- Amanda Ganete led the way with 11 digs. She needs 50 more to move into SPU's all-time top 5 in that category.
-- Although the Falcons hit just .146 (36 kills-21 errors-103 attacks), they limited Western Oregon to .034 (24-21-89). That's the first time this season they've kept an opponent below .100, and it is easily the fewest kills they have given up in a match so far. The previous low was 34 at Fresno Pacific on Sept. 1.
 
UP NEXT
SPU plays the second match of a four-match homestand on Saturday when Concordia-Portland comes to town for a 2:00 p.m. first serve The Cavaliers scored a four-game win at Saint Martin's on Thursday night, 16-25, 25-19, 25-20, 25-12.
 
 
NCAA WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL
Thursday, September 13, 2018
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
 
Seattle Pacific 3, Western Oregon 0
 
Game scores – 25-18, 25-21, 25-20.
 
Service aces – WOU 5 (Leila Holt 2), SPU 11 (Gabby Oddo 3, Symone Tran 3, Amanda Ganete 3).
Kills – WOU 24 (Sianna DiCarli 6), SPU 36 (Oddo 12).
Assists – WOU 23 (Holt 10, Maddie Mehciz 10), SPU 36 (Tran 31).
Digs – WOU 35 (Holt 8, Sierra Stultz 8), SPU 41 (Ganete 11).
Block assists / solo – WOU 16 / 1 solo (Morgan Haskett 4 / 0 sol, Sophie Hall 4 / 0 solo), SPU 16 / 1 solo (Shaun Crespi 7 / 0 solo).
Hitting (kills-errors-attacks) – WOU 24-21-89—.034 (Hall 4-2-7—.286), SPU 36-21-103—.146 (Gabi Stegemoller 7-2-13—.385, Oddo 12-3-29—.310).
Attendance – 111.
 
Records – Seattle Pacific 4-6, 2-1 GNAC. Western Oregon 4-6, 1-2 GNAC.
 
 
Next match
Concordia-Portland at Seattle Pacific
Saturday, 2:00 p.m.
Brougham Pavilion