FAIRBANKS, Alaska – On Tuesday, the Alaska Nanooks volleyball team defeated in-state rival Alaska Anchorage 3-0 in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference match at the Alaska Airlines Court. The victory marks the first time Nanook volleyball had beat the Seawolves since Sept. 18, 2010.

The win improves Alaska's overall record to 8-10 and 6-5 in conference play, while the Seawolves fall to 15-4 on the season and 8-3 in league matchups. With the Nanooks' 6-5 conference record, Alaska takes sole control of fourth place in the GNAC rankings, breaking away from a four-way tie for fourth prior to Tuesday's match.

Additionally, Alaska's six conference wins ties head coach Brian Scott's most GNAC victories in a single season. In 2015, Scott's first season as Alaska volleyball bench boss, the Nooks went 6-14 in league play and had yet to reach that mark since, until Tuesday.  

The Nooks went 25-22, 25-11 and 25-22 over their rival on Tuesday, sweeping Alaska Anchorage for the first time since Sept. 8, 2007.

Furthermore, Alaska is currently riding a five-match winning streak, a feat the Nanooks haven't done in league play since Nov. 1-16, 2002, where Alaska defeated Saint Martin's, Central Washington, Alaska Anchorage, Northwest Nazarene and Seattle University in consecutive GNAC matches.

"This team is a pretty special group," Scott said on Tuesday. "We dealt with adversity so well tonight. From before the game even started through the very last point, we were able to control momentum and went point-for-point to battle with these guys. I think the scoreboard showed that we were able to take control of our end of the game."

The Nanooks' defense shined on Tuesday night, as Alaska boasted a sideout percentage of 75, going 42-for-56. The Nooks' single-best sideout set was the second, where Alaska went 11-for-12 for 91 percent. Alaska also collected 38 digs to UAA's 37 and only had two receiving errors to the Seawolves' seven.

At the net, UAA edged the Nanooks with 6.0 team blocks, picking up four solo blocks and four block assists, while the Nanooks kept it close with two solo blocks and six block assists for 5.0 team blocks.

Individually, sophomore outside hitter Lahra Weber led Alaska's defensive passing with 16 digs, while freshman libero Makena Overbey collected 11.

Alaska's offense was also in full force on Tuesday, as the Nooks totaled 43 kills and only 14 errors off of 96 total attempts for a team hitting percentage of .302. Conversely, UAA posted only 30 kills and 13 errors off of 86 attempts for a .198 hitting percentage.

At the serving line, Alaska tallied seven service aces to UAA's two, led by junior right side Mica Shenglan and redshirt-sophomore outside hitter Markie Miller, who each collected two aces each.

Miller led Alaska's offense against the Seawolves, posting a match-high 15 kills and only two errors off of 28 attempts for a team-best individual hitting percentage of .464. Miller also chipped in her two aces and one block assist to lead all players with 17.5 points.

Sophomore outside hitter Cate Whiting paced the Nanooks' offense with a match-high 34 assists, while also chipping in four kills, three digs and one ace. Earlier on Tuesday, Whiting was named the America Volleyball Coaches Association's Division II Volleyball Player of the Week for her performances in last week's matches.

Tuesday's match consisted of 15 tie scores with 11 being in the first set alone, and five lead changes, also all in the first set.

The Alaska Nanooks will look to keep rolling on Thursday, Oct. 11, as they host the Montana State Billings Yellowjackets in a GNAC match at the Alaska Airlines Court. First serve is slated for 7pm AKT.

For more information on the Alaska Nanooks volleyball team, follow @NanooksVB on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks Volleyball team page on Facebook.