SEATTLE – Maddie Batiste was ready for a different outcome.
 
So were the rest of the Seattle Pacific Falcons.
 
Batiste slammed 20 kills – the last of which came on match point – and for the first time since 2013, SPU came out ahead of Western Washington on the volleyball court, scoring a four-set victory against the Vikings in the first half of a doubleheader on Saturday afternoon in Brougham Pavilion.
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Scores were 25-20, 19-25, 25-17, 25-20.
 
Western bounced back to win a close-fought second match, prevailing in four, 25-20, 19-25, 25-15, 25-23.
 
Prior to Saturday, SPU had lost 13 straight to the Vikings, including a 26-24, 25-20, 25-22 contest on Friday night in Bellingham. The last win against them was in four on Oct. 24, 2013 – which happened to be the 500^th victory program history.
 
Seattle Pacific has won 81 matches since that night – but none of them against WWU.

 
 
"It felt so good. I'm just so proud of my team after that win – proud of them after the whole weekend, but especially that one," Batiste said. "Seeing them over the past four years and not coming out with a win has not been easy. This has been such an exciting day for me."
 
Head coach Abbie Wright was especially happy to see the Falcons shake off some tightness as the weekend went along.

"Seeing them play a little more loose and more free was really fun – how they settled into the match and played aggressive," she said. "I felt like we got over some nerves that have plagued us in the past. Even in the losses, we were playing a high level of volleyball. … It's fun to watch matches like that when you see both teams playing excellent – it's just how the chips fall."
 
MATCH 1
SPU trailed just once in the opening set at 8-7 – then promptly ran off six straight points to go ahead for good at 13-8. The lead grew as large as eight.
 
Western Washington scored the first four points of Set 2 and never trailed.
 
Seattle Pacific led throughout the third set. Tied at 10-10, the Falcons went on an 8-3 run, with the final three points coming on a kill by Batiste, a kill by freshman Alison Wliks, and a service ace by freshman Sarah Day.
 
With Set 4 tied at 17-17, SPU ran off three straight points to go ahead for good: a kill by Batiste, a kill by sophomore Ashley Antoniak, and a Batiste service ace. A crosscourt kill by Batiste to the far corner on the first try at match point clinched it.
 
Batiste's 20 kills came on solid .319 hitting – that after she managed just five kills and hit minus-.120 in Friday's loss at Western.
 
"It was definitely a maturing moment for me," said Batiste, who also had nine digs and four block assists. "I knew I had to bounce back and could only really go up from yesterday. I came to the realization that if we were going to beat then, I need to pick it up a little bit for team. That's what I had to do."
 
Freshman middle blocker Hannah Hair added 13 kills on .423 hitting. Sophomore setter Lindsey Lambert logged a double-double of 47 assists and 18 digs.
 
MATCH 2
Seattle Pacific climbed back from a 10-5 deficit to tie the opening set at 17-17. The Vikings answered with three straight points and stayed ahead the rest of the way.
 
Except for early 2-1 and 5-4 deficits, SPU led throughout the second set. Up 20-18, the Falcons put it away by scoring five of the final six points. The last two of those came on back-to-back combined blocks by redshirt freshman Maya Holman and true freshman Sydney Perry.
 
WWU maintained control for most of the third set, pulling away with the final six points. The Vikings also had the upper hand for a good chunk of the fourth before Seattle Pacific went on a 6-1 run for a 20-17 lead. The Falcons were still up 23-22 when Western Washington got the final three points: an SPU attack error, a service ace, and a match-clinching kill from Olivia Fairchild.

 

"We're seeing more and more moments where we look mature, and I think that's really exciting," Wright said. "The first match, we did a good job of closing things down. The second match, we had some breakdowns at key moments. But kids came on (who hadn't played much) and did some really good things. They played hard, and they looked like they'd always been out there, and that made me really proud."
 
BY THE NUMBERS
 

-- Redshirt freshman opposite Maddie Pruden wound up with double-digit kills in both matches: 12 in the opener, 11 in the nightcap. Along with her team-high 12 on Friday, she had 35 kills for the weekend and hit .313 for the weekend, topped by Friday's .476 performance.
-- Sophomore setter Lindsey Lambert's 47 assists in the opener was a season high. She added another 31 in the second match, along with 14 digs for another double-double, giving her seven for the year. She has 405 for the season. Her 32 digs in the two matches combined pushed her past 300 for her career, now at 306.
-- Maddie Batiste's 20 kills in the first match made her the first Falcon of the season to record that many this spring. She had the previous high of 18 in a doubleheader opener on March 2 at Saint Martin's.
 
UP NEXT
The Falcons return to action on Saturday, May 8, with a home doubleheader against Western Oregon. The first match is at 10:00 a.m.; the second one follows 40 minutes after the conclusion of the first.
 
 
NCAA VOLLEYBALL
Saturday, April 24, 2021
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
 
Seattle Pacific 3, Western Washington 1
 
Game scores – 25-20, 19-25, 25-17, 25-20.
 
Service aces – WWU 5 (Lologo 1), SPU 8 (Antoniak 2, Day 2).
Kills – WWU 53 (Honrud 10), SPU 57 (Batiste 20, Hair 13, Pruden 12)
Assists – WWU 49 (Aleaga 44), SPU 55 (Lambert 47).
Digs – WWU 76 (Lologo 18), SPU 72 (Lambert 18, Dawson 13, Antoniak 11).
Hitting (kills-errors-attacks) – WWU 53-20-160—.206 (Honrud 10-2-18—.444), SPU 57-19-160—.237 (Hair 13-2-26—.423).
 
 
Western Washington 3, Seattle Pacific 1
 
Game scores – 25-20, 19-25, 25-15, 25-23.
 
Service aces – WWU 5 (Davenport 3), SPU 6 (Brachvogel 3).
Kills – WWU 50 (Heilborn 14), SPU 45 (Pruden 11).
Assists – WWU 47 (Aleaga 44), SPU 44 (Lambert 31).
Digs – WWU 68 (Heilborn 14), SPU 63 (Rosenthal 18, Lambert 14).
Hitting (kills-errors-attacks) – WWU 50-23-140—.193 (Fairchild 6-1-12—.417), SPU 45-28-155—.110 (Perry 8-2-16—.375).
 
 
Records
Seattle Pacific 8-5.  Western Washington 5-1.
 
Next match
Western Oregon at Seattle Pacific
Saturday, May 8     10:00 a.m. / 1:00 p.m.
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.