ANCHORAGE - The Alaska Nanooks volleyball team swept Emmanuel on Friday, Aug. 26 in game two of the Seawolf Volleyball Invitational. This win moved the 'Nooks to 4-2, 0-0 GNAC on the season.
"We did a much better job at following defensive systems today." Said head coach Brian Scott, "We were especially good at staying aggressive at the service line and forced their hand offensively. I thought our setters did a great job at distributing the ball and putting hitters in great opportunities for success."
Alaska picked up the sweep behind 25-14, 25-18 and 25-21 set wins. In set one, the 'Nooks used a quick start to jump ahead 9-2 behind kills from Ella Bines and Karli Nielson. Nielson posted three-straight kills, before passing the torch to the rest of the Nanooks offense in the first. Kristina Head, Rilee White and Bines posted the next few kills for the Nanooks, making it 16-6 at the midway point of the set. Emmanuel made a small run, crawling back to within five at 19-14, but the Nanooks quickly ended it with four-straight points on an Elizabeth Jackson kill, White kill, a pair of attack errors on Emmanuel, a kill from Head and a Jessa Longservice-ace to end it 25-14.
The 'Nooks hit .452 in the first set, posting 14 kills on zero errors.
In the second set, the Nanooks offense stayed alive, as they hit .406 with 18 kills and only five errors in their 25-18 set-two win. Alaska jumped out to another early lead, using a pair of Nielson kills to go ahead 6-3. The Nanooks offense halted for a moment, allowing Emmanuel to grab a one-point lead, but Alaska responded with six-straight points, taking the lead back at 13-8. The two teams traded points until White picked up a kill, making it 20-15. The Nanooks then finished off Emmanuel with five of the final seven points, ending it on a Kristina Head service-ace.
The third and final set started as a battle of runs. Alaska opened up, taking a 6-4 lead before the Lions roared back to take a one-point lead. The two teams traded runs and leads, once again, but after back-and-forth volleyball and one final tie at 17-17, the Nanooks re-established the momentum and put the Lions away. Elena Guc and Kristina Head had back-to-back kills, giving the 'Nooks a 19-17 lead. Behind three Ella Bines kills, the Nanooks then made it 24-19, using a four-point streak. Emmanuel fought back for the next two, but a Karli Nielson kill put them away and gave the 'Nooks the 25-21 set-three win and sweep.
Ella Bines led the way for the Nanooks offensively, posting 10 kills and a .300 hit percentage. Kristina Head and Rilee White both posted nine kills. Head posted an incredible .533 hit percentage while White added 10 digs, tying her with Jessa Long for a game-high.
Alaska finishes their time at the Seawolf Volleyball Invitational tomorrow with two games. They'll start out at 9:00 a.m. with Lubbock Christian before playing again at 2:00 p.m. against Pittsburg State.
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks volleyball team, follow @NanooksVB on Instagram or Twitter, or like the Alaska Nanooks Volleyball team page on Facebook.
