FAIRBANKS - The Alaska Nanooks volleyball team moved to 8-2, 0-0 on the season with a four-set victory over the FSC Mocs. The Nanooks will complete the Denali State Bank Ice Block Classic with two games at 2:30 p.m. against Arkansas-Fort Smith and 7:30 p.m. against Findlay. 

Alaska opened the match with a 25-17 set-one win before falling in the second 19-25. They turned the loss into two final set wins to grab the 3-1 win. They won set three 25-17 and closed out the Mocs 25-10 with a huge fourth set. In the first, the Nanooks hit .344 and were led by three different players with four kills. Elena Guc, Karli Nielson and Rilee White each tallied four, moving the 'Nooks ahead 10-9 after trailing early in the first. They pushed their lead to 17-11 behind three-straight attack errors by FSC. That lead moved to nine at 21-12 on a Nielson kill. After a small run by the Mocs, the Nanooks used another attack-error from Florida Southern to take the 25-17 set one victory. 

The second set was all FSC for the majority. After jumping ahead 3-10, they made it 9-16 before making it 14-22. The Nanooks put together a small run, making it 19-24 before finishing it off 19-25, tying it at 1-1.

In set number three, Alaska jumped ahead 10-3 behind kills from Elena Guc, Kristina Head, Elizabeth Jackson, Karli Nielson and Rilee White. They used the momentum to make it a nine-point lead on multiple occasions. A Kristina Head kill then made it a 10-point lead, giving the Nanooks their first of two 10-point leads. After four-straight points from the Mocs, Karli Nielson wrapped up the third set with a kill, giving the Nanooks a 25-17 win. Nielson led the 'Nooks with six kills in the third, hitting .417. 

Alaska put the Mocs away quickly in the fourth, taking it 25-10. They jumped ahead 7-3 before making it 15-5 on a Rilee White kill. Soon they were looking at a 13-point advantage at 22-9 on an Elizabeth Jackson kill before White ended things with a kill, making it 25-10. This was the Nanooks' best set-win of the 2022 season. 

White led all with 16 kills, a .378 hit percentage, six digs, four aces and two digs while Karli Nielson followed closely behind with 15 kills, a .387 hit percentage, two digs and an ace. Kristina Head had herself a career-night, hitting 10 kills while hitting .533, tallying eight digs, three solo blocks, two assist blocks and two aces. Jessa Long posted a game-high 17 digs. Ainsley Smith and Taylor Overn shared the passing load as Smith posted 26 assists and Overn added 23. 

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.