Box Score FAIRBANKS, Alaska – The Alaska Nanooks volleyball team broke their five-game losing streak by defeating the Seattle Pacific Falcons in five dramatic sets in the Nanooks' home opener at the Alaska Airlines Court on Thursday night. In front of a crowd of 331, Alaska went 25-23, 23-25, 25-21, 18-25 and 16-14 over the Falcons in what was both teams' first Great Northwest Athletic Conference game of the 2016 season. The Nanooks improve their overall record to 2-6 (1-0 GNAC), while Seattle Pacific moves to 4-5 overall (0-1 GNAC).
"Tonight was a good win for us. Our girls were gritty but SPU never stopped battling. I think in the second set, we were down 18-9 and to only lose that one 23-25, I'm very impressed with how our girls reacted," head coach Brian Scott said following the game. "We went into tonight with a very specific game plan and I thought Rachel did a great job executing what we wanted to have happen and it shows in the stats."
Junior outside hitter Maddie Davis collected her first double-double of the season, posting 20 kills and 11 digs on the night. Sophomore outside hitter Amberly Jeane also tallied 20 kills on the night, while also earning four digs. Davis and Jeane's 20 kills each tied for the game-high, as SPU's Gabby Oddo was close behind with 19. Freshman middle blocker Kim Wong registered the best hitting percentage for the Nanooks with a .333 off of 12 kills. Junior setter Rachel Nichols also chipped in extensively for the Nooks, as the Riverton, Utah native had a game-high 64 assists, five kills and four digs.
The Nanooks handily took the first set 25-23 after a four-kill effort from both Jeane and Davis. A couple four-point runs from both teams had the game tied up at 20-20, as the Nooks lost a two-point lead. Thanks to a service error from the Falcons, junior Riley Podowicz stepped up to the plate and posted an ace to make it 21-21. After a timeout from the Falcons, Podowicz and Seattle Pacific's Sophie Kuehl both posted errors at the serving line to make it a tight 22-22. It was a kill by Wong to seal the first set for the Nooks and make it 25-23. Olsen recorded six digs, while Nichols posted 12 assists.
The second set got off to a rough start for the Nanooks, as a series of attack errors gave the Falcons a 3-8 lead in a hurry. The trend continued as the Nooks found themselves in a hole at the 5-14 mark. Alaska started to close the gap on the Falcons, going on a five-point run late to make it 14-19. Wong stepped up with three kills in five plays to make it 17-20. A late three-point run allowed the Nooks to pull into 22-23, but the Falcons capitalized on two kills from Oddo to take the second set 23-25. Davis led the Nooks with six kills, while Nichols had 16 assists and Olsen recorded eight digs.
The third set was a back-and-forth battle for both teams, as neither gained a two-point lead on the other until the 13-11 mark in favor of the Nanooks. Alaska maintained the lead throughout the remainder of the set to take the third set 25-21, off of a kill from Jeane. Jeane recorded six kills in the third set to pace the Nooks, while Nichols posted 15 assists.
The Nooks were down early in the fourth set 2-7, as the Falcons refused to go down without a fight. Seattle kept the lead until the Nooks went on a three-point run to tie the set at 13-13. SPU went on a six-point run to extend their lead 15-21 over the Nanooks before an attack error made by the Nooks gave the Falcons the fourth set 18-25. Davis and Jeane registered three kills each, with Nichols posting 10 assists.
The fifth set proved to be a battle, but Alaska took the lead first, going up 5-2 thanks to a couple kills from Davis. The Falcons tied it up 10-10 after going on five-point run to take the lead for a couple of points afterward, when Alaska tied it back up 13-13. An attack error by Jeane gave the Falcons a 13-14 lead before Jeane answered back with back-to-back kills to make it 15-14 Alaska. An attack error for the Falcons sealed the Nanooks victory 16-14. The fifth set proved to be Alaska's best hitting percentage set, as the team put up a .435. Jeane and Davis recorded four kills each, with Nichols dishing 11 assists and Olsen racking up four digs.
The Alaska Nanooks volleyball team returns to the Alaska Airlines Court at the Patty Center on Saturday, Sept. 17 to take on the Saint Martin's Saints at 4pm AKT. The game is also UA Staff and Faculty Appreciation Day, where any UA staff or faculty member will receive a one free general admission ticket if they present a valid UA ID at the door.
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks volleyball team, follow @NanooksVB on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks volleyball team page on Facebook.
