KIRKLAND, Wash.—After two weekends on the road, the Northwest University volleyball team was more than thankful to finally play at home and it showed during a 3-0 non-conference win over Pacific on Tuesday night in front of 394 at The Pavilion.
 
The hosts topped the Boxers 25-15, 25-16, 25-11 in Pacific's season opener. It was the sixth match of the year for the NAIA (Cascade Conference) Eagles, who improved to 4-2 on the season.
 
"They were ready to play," said Boxer head coach Kip Yoshimura of the Eagles. "We looked startled a bit at times to be playing against a team that is further along than us. It gives us a measuring point for where we need to go next in terms of getting better."
 
The visitors held one lead in the second set but were otherwise playing catch-up all night against the Eagles.
 
Tiare Kaopua led the Boxers with 10 kills, while Lia Zablan had 10 digs and Hannah Smargiassi had two blocks to lead the defense.
 
An even tougher road trip looms for Yoshimura's Boxers when they travel to southern California this weekend to tackle challenging NCAA Division III opponents in the Pacific Coast Classic. There they will face host and No. 8 nationally ranked Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and Occidental on Friday (Sept. 4), followed by a doubleheader on Saturday against LeTourneau (Tex.) and La Verne.
 
"We have lots of things to work on," Yoshimura added. "We are excited about the upcoming weekend with the chance to travel and play four more matches against quality teams."