SEATTLE – The volleyball victories aren't coming easily for Seattle Pacific.
 
But they are coming more frequently.
 
 

Ashley Antoniak slammed 15 kills and Allison Wilks tied her career high with seven blocks, part of the team's 13 points in that category as the Falcons scored a 3-1 decision against Western Oregon on Thursday night.
 
Scores of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference match in Brougham Pavilion were 25-19, 22-25, 25-15, 25-22.
 

SPU (6-9, 4-3 GNAC) now has won four of its past five contests – and the lone loss was a five-setter to then-No. 14 Alaska Anchorage, one of six nationally ranked teams on the other side of the net during the first four weeks of the schedule.
 




Now, the Falcons have won a season-best three in a row. That streak includes a come-from-behind four-setter at Northwest Nazarene last Thursday, a come-from-behind five-setter at Central Washington on Saturday, and Thursday's triumph in which SPU was down 20-19 in Set 4 before scoring six of the last eight points to win it.

 

"Each group on the court is pretty comfortable with each other, They practice together every day in the gym and they just stay calm in close situations," head coach Jason Rhine said. "They're able to pull out some close wins and make big plays when they get a chance."
 
Seattle Pacific never trailed in the opening set – but Western Oregon (5-9, 1-5 GNAC) never backed down, either. The Falcons used a 5-0 scoring run to expand a 10-9 lead to 15-9. The Wolves then put seven of the next 10 points on the board to get within 18-16 before SPU regained command with a string of three straight to make it 21-16.
 
Western Oregon took its first lead of the night at 13-12 midway through the second set, then used a four-point burst to turn a 15-14 deficit into an 18-15 advantage. Seattle Pacific climbed back into a 19-19 tie, but never was able to get back in front as the Wolves finished with double the number of kills in that set, 20-10.
 
SPU was in front nearly all the way in Set 3, building a lead of as many as 11 points in the latter stages.
 
A five-point run midway through the fourth helped the Falcons go from 9-8 behind to 13-9 in front. It eventually was tied at 21-21 when junior outside hitter / middle blocker Wilks and junior opposite Maddie Pruden combined on a block for 22-21. A Western Oregon attack was tipped into the net for a 23-21 lead, but the Wolves cut it to 23-22 on a kill by Laney O'Neil.
 
Pruden and junior middle Hannah Hair teamed up on a block to set up match point at 24-22. Moments later, junior middle Erin Smith converted it with a kill.
 
"Western Oregon showed up with a good game plan. They challenged our block a lot, which for a while was falling their way," Rhine said. "We tightened up and got a few more blocks on their side in Sets 3 and 4, which made it harder for them to score. I thought our serving picked up in those sets. We missed a couple, but stayed aggressive and kind of knocked them out of system and that also made it tougher for them to find kills.
 
"Our serving and defense stepped up, and we did enough offensively to come out with a win in a close Set 4," Rhine added.
 
BY THE NUMBERS
-- The Falcons hit .199 for the match, including .233 in the third set and .206 in the fourth. Western Oregon finished at .099, the second-lowest percentage by an SPU opponent this season (Winona State .083 on Aug. 26).
-- After the Wolves got their 20 kills in Set 2, Seattle Pacific limited them to just 17 in the final two sets combined.
-- Ashley Antoniak's 15 kills pushed her past 200 for her career. She now has 201. Antoniak hit .323 for the match.
--SPU's setter combination of senior Lindsey Lambert and sophomore Emily Tulino both recorded double-doubles for the second straight match. Lambert had 17 assists and tied her season high with 13 digs. Tulino logged 19 assists and 10 digs. Tulino's double-double was her fourth straight and sixth of the season. Lambert's was her third of the year and 20th of her career.

 

-- Junior outside hitter Sarah Day saw her first action of the season – and made the most of it. Coming onto the court late in the third set, she got a kill on her very first attack to give the Falcons a 22-13 lead. Just a couple points later, Day got another kill to make it 24-14.
-- Sophomore libero Abigail Cunningham led SPU with 15 digs.
-- Hannah Hair hit .533 (9-1-15), her third .500-plus night of the season.
-- The Falcons had a huge night defensively, tying a season high with 26 block assists. Along with Allison Wilks' seven, Hannah Hair and Maddie Pruden each had six.
 
UP NEXT
The Falcons continue their three-match homestand on Saturday when Saint Martin's comes to Brougham Pavilion at 2:00 p.m. The Saints scored a 3-0 sweep at Montana State Billings on Thursday, 25-18, 25-21, 26-24.
 

NCAA WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL
Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
 
Seattle Pacific 3, Western Oregon 1
 
Game scores – 25-19, 22-25, 25-15, 25-22.
 
Service aces – WOU 5 (5 players with 1), SPU 4 (Wilks 2).
Kills – WOU 47 (Hartsook 11), SPU 49 (Antoniak 15).
Assists – WOU 47 (West 24), SPU 47 (Tulino 19, Lambert 17).
Digs – WOU 55 (Henry 12), SPU 61 (Cunningham 15, Lambert 13, Tulino 10).
Block assists / solo – WOU 18 / 0 solo (Asciutto 5 / 0 solo), SPU 26 / 0 solo (Wilks 7 / 0 solo).
Hitting (kills-errors-attacks) – WOU 47-32-151—099 (Asciutto 8-1-16—438), SPU 49-21-141—199 (Hair 9-1-15—533).
Attendance – 121.
 
 
Records
Seattle Pacific 6-9, 4-3 GNAC.  Western Oregon 5-9, 1-4 GNAC.
 
Next match
Saint Martin's at Seattle Pacific
Saturday, 2:00 p.m.
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.