ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The Alaska Nanooks volleyball team lost in a deciding fifth-set to Central Washington on Halloween evening. After forcing a fifth-set with a 25-19, fourth-set victory, the Nanooks fell in the final, 12-15. This loss drops the Nanooks to 10-11, 7-6 GNAC on the 2019 season.
The first two sets set the tone for the evening; an even matched, all-out battle. In the first set, the Nanooks and Wildcats jumped out to a back-and-forth match. Each team responded to the others answer, creating a back-and-forth environment from the get-go. No lead was greater than three in the opening set as Alaska claimed the early lead 16-13 before CWU made a small run, tying the match at 19-19. A
Lahra Weber kill gave the Nanooks a 23-22 lead, but the Wildcats made one last push, claiming the final three points of the set and winning, 23-25.
The second set held all the answers for the 'Nooks to start. After tying the game early at 6-6, Alaska grabbed 10 of the next 11 points to form a 15-7 lead. The Wildcats answered. Following a Makala Swart kill and block on Weber, the CWU team managed a run of their own, cutting the lead down to two at 19-17, eventually taking the lead. That lead did not last;
Kim Wong,
Emily Moorhead,
Cate Whiting and Weber checked in with kills, taking back the momentum and putting the game away for the Nanooks, 25-22.
Sets three and four would both end by the score, 25-19 as CWU took set three from Alaska and the Nanooks answered with their set four victory, setting the two teams up for a fifth-set rematch.
Back on Oct. 5, the Nanooks defeated Central Washington in Fairbanks in five-sets, mounting a similar 1-2 set comeback to claim the win. Unfortunately the Nanooks could not find the same magic tonight, Oct. 31.
The fifth set saw seven lead changes and nine ties in the deciding, first-to-15 set. The Nanooks hopped out to a 10-8 lead behind a spread offense and kills from
Markie Miller,
AveRee Reynolds,
Kim Wong and Moorhead. Despite getting to 10 first, the Wildcats made the final push, claiming six of the final seven points and the match, 12-15.
Head coach
Brian Scott felt the effort was outstanding tonight as he had this to say, "It was a great battle and hard fought match on both sides. It was fun to be a part of that battle. We had an outstanding defensive effort tonight. Makena [Overbey] was superb on defense and really, so was the entire team. Our block was very good as well, everyone did their part. Unfortunately, we did not come out on the right end tonight."
Makena Overbey and Moorhead led the way on defense for the 'Nooks as Overbey checked in with 26 digs and Moorhead blocked nine total balls. Just behind Moorhead in blocks was Whiting and Wong.
Wong's night was not just a defensive showing. On the offensive side, Wong tallied a new career-high with 21 total kills on the night, aiding that effort with a .356 swing percentage on 45 attempts. With only five total errors, Wong's attack seemed to be the go-to for junior, setter,
Cate Whiting. Whiting was just one assist from reaching the half-century mark, assisting on 49 total kills.
The Nanooks are back in action on Saturday, Nov. 2 when they head to Nampa, Idaho to face the Northwest Nazarene Nighthawks as they look to earn a season-split with NNU after falling to them on Oct. 3.
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks volleyball team, follow @NanooksVB on Twitter, or like the Alaska Nanooks Volleyball team page on Facebook.
