SEATTLE – The Seattle Pacific University women's volleyball team took Central Washington University to their limits on Saturday afternoon, but the Falcons were outlasted by the Wildcats 3-2 (18-25, 25-21, 20-25, 25-21, 15-8) inside Royal Brougham Pavilion.
FROM THE COACH
"We started the match with some great defensive stops and transition opportunities," head coach
Jason Rhine said. "From there, it felt like both teams had their runs, and Central was able to take set two. In set three, we made an adjustment to have Maddie Benjamin enter the game and try to slow down some of Central's offense, and she came up with some big blocks down the stretch to help our team get a slight edge in set three."
"Ultimately, the team fought hard, but hats off to Central, who came up with some big-time swings in the pressure moments of sets four and five," Rhine added. "We couldn't quite keep up with their offensive output in the end, but we are looking forward to having some extra practice next week with only one match to prepare for. Proud of the growth that our whole team continues to show on the court so far this year."
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Falcons opened the match with an 11-3 run over the Wildcats in the first set.
- Megan Omlid led the group with three kills during the run.
- The Wildcats pulled to within four of the Falcons, but SPU used a 5-2 run to close out the set and win it 25-18.
- Set two started with an 8-4 stretch from the Wildcats.
- CWU maintained distance from the Falcons to take the set 25-21.
- The Falcons trailed the Wildcats 17-14 in the third set, before going on 10-3 run to earn a 25-20 set victory.
- Madelyn Benjamin had two blocks and a kill during that span, driving the momentum to the side of the Falcons.
- The Falcons trailed the Wildcats 18-17 in the fourth set before the visitors had a 7-4 run to win the set 25-21.
- The Falcons hung with the Wildcats before a 6-1 run from CWU closed out the fifth set 15-8, and the match 3-2.
FROM THE BOX SCORE
- The Falcons hit .233 as a team during Saturday's match.
- SPU had a great day from behind the service line, dropping in eight aces to just two from CWU.
- Maiya Lester led the Falcons with 16 kills on a .267 hitting percentage.
- Elle McCandless had nine kills on a .353 hitting percentage.
- Omlid recorded another double-double for the Falcons with 12 kills while tying for a team-high 15 digs.
- Christina Lopez tied Omlid for the team-high in digs with 15 on Saturday.
- Benjamin had three solo blocks against the Wildcats.
- Sophia Chambers had a game-high 38 assists for the Falcons.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Lester set a new career-high with 16 kills against the Wildcats, beating her previous career-high of 14 set last Thursday night.
- Benjamin recorded a career-high three solo blocks against CWU.
- Omlid recorded her ninth double-double with the Falcons on Saturday.
UP NEXT
The Falcons fly to Billings, Mont. To take on Montana State University Billings on Saturday, Oct. 11 at 12:00 p.m. PST.
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