SEATTLE - The Nanooks volleyball team traveled to the Pacific Northwest on Thursday evening for a matchup against Seattle Pacific. The Nanooks took down the Falcons in straight sets, with each set ending in a 25-19 victory for Alaska. With the win, the Nanooks improve to 11-4, 3-2 GNAC, while SPU falls to 1-11, 1-3 GNAC.

How it Happened
The Nanooks built a 13-10 lead to start the match, receiving three kills each from Elena Guc and Karli Nielson. Four straight Falcons points saw Alaska lose the lead, with SPU now in the driver's seat 14-13. However, the Nanooks responded with a 4-0 run, taking a 17-14 lead and forcing a Falcons timeout. Two kills from Hannah Hair out of the break brought Alaska's lead down to one, but the Nanooks notched five points unanswered, with three kills from Rilee White and another from Josie Jansen. Alaska controlled the set from there, as a Cynphany Henderson kill closed out the first with the Nanooks on top by six.

The Nanooks led the second set from start to finish, racing out to a 9-5 lead, with Nielson and White picking up kills and Jansen and Rachel Pierce notching two block assists each. From there, Guc and Pierce took over, slamming five and four kills, respectively, over the remainder of the set, and the Nanooks logged another six-point set victory.

SPU held a 4-3 lead out of the gate in the third set, but a 5-0 run for the Nanooks gave the Blue and Gold a four-point lead. After the Falcons ended the run with a kill, the Nanooks took the following two points to make it 10-5. Alaska would not lead by less than four for the remainder of the set. Despite a 5-1 run for SPU later in the third brought Alaska's advantage down to 20-16, the Nanooks ended the match scoring five of eight points, with Nielson notching two kills during the run and Guc closing out the match with her 13th kill of the evening.

By the Numbers

• Guc led the Nanooks with 13 kills during the contest while hitting .524. She added 1.5 total blocks and two digs.
• Pierce also notched double-digit kills, finishing with 10. She swung at a .421 clip and collected four total blocks and three digs.
• White and Nielson notched eight kills apiece while adding seven and eight digs, respectively.
• Ainsley Smith and Henderson both saw plenty of action, with Smith ending the evening with 22 assists and Henderson tallying 18.
• Tessa Onaga posted double-digit digs again for Alaska, recording 14 during the match. This marks her seventh consecutive contest in which she has reached the 10+ dig mark.
• The Nanooks hit .304 in the match while holding the Falcons to a .124 hitting percentage. They also out-blocked the number one blocking team in the GNAC 13-5.

What's Next
The Nanooks stay on the road and travel to Montana State Billings on Saturday for a match against the Yellowjackets. First serve is set for 11 a.m. AKST.

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