ANCHORAGE – It was a tough day in Anchorage for the Alaska Nanook volleyball team as they were swept in straight-sets by the AVCA's #18-ranked Central Missouri Jennies. This loss dropped the Nanooks to 2-3 on the season.
Set one saw the Nanooks fall 17-25. Seven errors to the Jennies two played the biggest part in the set one loss as the 'Nooks found 13 kills but managed only a .128 hit percentage. UCM tallied 15 kills and hit for a combined .342. In the second set, the Nanooks found success again with another 13 kills, however another seven errors with UCM's 15 kills and one error spelled a loss in set two, 18-25. The third and final set was the same score, 18-25 and the 'Nooks were outhit nine to 18.
In set one, the Nanooks found themselves trailing early. First they were down 2-5 before
Sophie Schilling caught a kill and started a run that eventually became a 5-5 tie. Unfortunately, the Jennies returned with their own run, making it 5-9 on a 4-0 run.
Karli Nielson ended the run, however, the Jennies found runs of their own to answer Alaska's answer. UCM jumped out to a 10-17 lead and eventually 11-19, leaving a mark in set one. Set two saw some success from the Nanooks, despite not being able to close it out.
The Nanooks jumped out to an early 5-2 and 7-3 lead behind
Elizabeth Jackson and
AveRee Reynolds kills. Despite the early success, the Jennies made a push. A
Lahra Weber kill to make it 8-4 maintained the momentum, but eventually, the offense went stale.
Rilee White picked up a kill to stop the UCM momentum after they pulled within two, but the Jennies went on a quick 5-0 run to take their first lead of the set. After the Nanooks pulled within one at 14-15 Central Missouri rounded off another run, this time a 8-2 run to push their lead to 15-23. They would go on to win the set 18-25.
The third set was similar fate for Alaska as they jumped out to an early 3-0 lead before UCM grabbed the next seven points. A small run started with a White kill and followed by a Weber ace pushed it back to a one-point deficit. One timeout later, the 'Nooks trailed again, this time 10-16. They pushed it back to 18-21 but UCM grabbed the final four points for the match win.
Rilee White and
AveRee Reynolds led the way in the offensive attack, combining for 17 kills, nine for White and eight for Reynolds. White had a swing percentage of .381 while Reynolds had a .171.
Cate Whiting added 28 assists and grabbed another double-double with 13 digs.
Dani Dodge led the way in the dig category with 19 and
Sophie Schilling had the team-high in blocks with two.
The Nanooks play twice on Friday, Sept. 3 at noon and 5:00 p.m.
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks volleyball team, follow @NanooksVB on Twitter, @AlaskaNanooksVB on Instagram, or like the Alaska Nanooks Volleyball team page on Facebook.
