The Logger volleyball team faced off against the Whitworth Pirates on Oct. 4 in a tough five-set match in Spokane. The Loggers ultimately defeated the Pirates in five sets.
With this win, the Loggers hold four wins and one loss in the Northwest Conference (NWC) and nine wins and five losses overall. The Loggers were ranked in 16th place in the overall NCAA Division III rankings before the win over the Pirates. The win on Friday leaves them still in second place behind rival Tacoma college Pacific Lutheran University.
The stats leaders for the Loggers included senior Jackie Harvey (Santa Barbara, Calif.) who had a whopping 17 kills and 20 digs. She was one of three Loggers to record 20 digs on the day. Leading the Loggers in digs was fellow senior Christina Chun (Pearl City, Hawaii) with 25 digs.
The Loggers came out in front early with a quick 2-0 lead in games. The Loggers jumped out to 10-3 lead in the first set and a 12-5 lead in the second set to reach 2-0. With pressure on, it looked like the Pirates would crumble in three sets. Whitworth found a way back into the match winning the third and fourth sets by only five points each at a score of 25-20.
This brought the match to the decisive final set. Both the Loggers and the Pirates traded points in the early parts of the game.
Neither team was able to claw ahead until the Loggers built a small three-point lead early in the final set. Whitworth began to lose focus and a combination block from sophomore Emily Convery (Portland, Ore.) and sophomore Danielle Westerman (San Francisco, Calif.) increased the Logger advantage to 5-2.
The Pirates again showed that they would not quit as they fought back to tie the set at seven apiece for both teams.
The Loggers showed resolve by responding with a venomous ace from Logger junior Jalene Toy (Snohomish, Wash.) to give the Loggers an 11-9 lead.
The match continued to be a back-and-forth affair as the Pirates battled back to take the lead at 13-12. Things were looking grim for the Loggers, who needed a boost.
They got one from Westerman who leveled the score at 13 apiece. The Pirates were shaken by the Logger resolve as they committed two errors to seal a 15-13 victory for the Loggers in the final set, making the set score 3-2.
Along with Harvey’s impressive double-double that led the Logger win, other bright spots for the Loggers included fellow senior Jenni Brehove (Vista, Calif.) achieving a double-double racking up a total of 47 assists and 14 digs. Senior Marissa Florant (Palo Alto, Calif.) also had a double-double with 10 kills and 22 digs. Convery lead the team in blocks with a total of six.
The Loggers next face off against Willamette tonight at home at 7 p.m.
