Pacific Survives Five-Set Marathon To Beat Willamette
Box Score
SALEM, Ore. – Pacific put together another solid hitting performance to win their third match in a row Friday, battling their way through five sets to beat Willamette, 25-17, 17-25, 25-27, 25-19, 15-12, in Northwest Conference volleyball action at Cone Field House.
The Boxers (11-5, 5-2 NWC) finished hitting .251 for the match and never hit worse than .194 for any one set, doing that in the second set that they lost 25-19. Willamette (6-10, 3-4 NWC) put on a strong offensive display themselves, hitting .198 for the match and .464 in the second set.
Kelsy Takashima (Sr., Kaunakakai, Hawaii) led the way for the Boxers with 17 kills and a .353 hitting percentage.
Alexa Block (Jr., Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.) notched her eighth double-double of the season with 15 kills and 15 digs while
Haley Bedell (Fr., Bothell, Wash.) and
Mariah McHolland (So., Renton, Wash.) each contributing 12 kills.
Malea Webb (Fr., Spokane, Wash.) finished with 30 assists and
Jade Thompson (Jr., Marysville, Wash.) registered 45 assists.
Madison Leenstra led Willamette offensively with 16 kills. Danica Reed added 12 to go along with 11 digs and Shannon Waltz had 10 kills. Kathy Lee Glenn registered 33 digs and Emily Compton had 45 assists.
After Willamette took the early first set lead, the Boxers charged back to take a 13-8 lead. The Boxers took the lead on a string of seven straight points won, which included two kills by McHolland and three Willamette attack errors. The Bearcats came back to within 15-11 on Nicole Mertens' kill but would come no closer. Block's kill made it a 21-14 Pacific lead and
Gabriela Vega's (Fr., Spokane, Wash. ) service ace won it for the Boxers.
Willamette led from nearly start to finish in the second set, pulling out an 8-3 lead on a Pacific attack error and went up 15-7 on Leenstra's kill. Pacific pulled back to within 21-15 on a Willamette service error, but could not get close as a block by Leenstra and Waltz closed out the 25-17 victory.
Pacific pulled away from a close third set start to take a 15-11 lead on a Willamette attack error. The Bearcats rallied back to tie the frame at 21-21 on a Pacific setting error, and then took the 24-23 lead on Emily Compton's kill. Defensive specialist
Brittney Johnson (Sr., Beaverton, Ore.) notched a rare kill to force extra point, but a service error and an attack error after the 25-25 tie handed the victory to Willamette.
Pacific never trailed in the fourth set, building a 13-9 lead on a McHolland kill and then going up 21-16 on a string of two Willamette attack errors. McHolland accounted for the final three Pacific kills of the set, including one that silenced a two-point Willamette rally that forced the fifth set.
In the deciding frame, the Boxers pulled away from an 8-8 to go up 11-8 on a Bedell kill. It was a 12-9 lead when Willamette scored three straight points, including a kill by Reed that tied it again at 12-12. Takashima gave Pacific the ball back for good with her kill at 13-12 and two Bearcats' errors closed the match out.
Pacific puts their second place NWC standing on the line again on Saturday as they play at No. 23 ranked Pacific Lutheran. Match time is 7 p.m.
