HONOLULU -  The Nanooks volleyball team hit the floor for the final time in Hawaii on Saturday afternoon when they faced off against the Sharks of Hawaii Pacific University. They were able to take care of business in The Shark Tank, defeating HPU in straight sets. Alaska moves to 1-2, 0-0 GNAC while Hawaii Pacific falls to 0-2, 0-0 PacWest.

How It Happened
The first few points of the opening set were tightly contested, with Alaska holding a 5-4 lead early over the Sharks. However, the Nanooks scored five of the following six points, building a 10-5 lead over Hawaii Pacific. Both teams traded blows over the following three points before Alaska went on a run where it scored 14 of the following 17 points to take the first set 25-10. Ainsley Smith, Karli Nielson and Elizabeth Jackson each slammed three kills during the set, while Rilee White chipped in with back-to-back service aces for the Nanooks. Alaska hit .500 as a team, notching 13 kills during the set.

Alaska began the second set strongly, building a 12-7 lead over the Sharks after a kill and ace by Kristina Head forced an HPU timeout. However, Hawaii Pacific came out of the break firing, scoring seven unanswered points to put itself in the lead at 14-12, with two service aces by Taylor Kaoihana. The Nanooks tied the set at 14 with kills by White and Nielson, but after four more unanswered points by the Sharks, the hosts held a four-point lead at 18-14. Both teams traded the following nine points, with the Nanooks receiving two kills from Head, bringing the score to 22-19 HPU. Alaska would go on to score six of the following seven points, including the set's final five points to take the 25-23 victory. The Nanooks received two service aces by Smith and two kills by Elena Guc in the closing stages, coming back from being down four late in the second. Guc paced the team with five kills during the set, while White tallied four. Alaska outhit HPU during the second set, notching 15 kills with a .313 team hitting percentage compared to 13 with a .303 hitting percentage for the Sharks.

Set three began with Alaska building a four-point lead at 8-4, with White accounting for three kills during the opening portion of the third. A 5-of-6 run by the Sharks would knot things up at nine. After a Head kill, Hawaii Pacific scored four straight, building its lead to 13-10. This was where the run started for the Nanooks as they scored seven unanswered points to put themselves back in the lead at 17-13. Guc notched a kill and a block assist during the run. Despite a late surge by the Sharks that put them in the lead at 21-20, Alaska rattled off five consecutive points, capped off with a Smith kill, to take the third and final set 25-21. White tallied six of Alaska's 13 kills during the set while adding a service ace to bring her match total to a team-leading three. The Nanooks posted a hitting percentage of .167 during the set compared to .000 for the Sharks.

By the Numbers

• White's 12 kills led the team, while Guc and Nielson finished with eight apiece. White also posted a team-high .440 hitting percentage, the best of any player on the floor.
• Smith collected 31 assists on the afternoon. In addition, she slammed five kills in five attempts for a 1.000 hitting percentage. The setter led the team in digs with nine and tallied two service aces.
• Jackson logged a team-high two total blocks, including one solo block. Nielson and Head followed with 1.5 blocks each.
• As a team, the Nanooks hit .300 during the contest, posting 41 kills. They added nine service aces, 30 digs, seven total blocks and 34 assists.

What's Next
Alaska stays on the road when they travel to Irvine, Calif., for the CUI Tournament. Its first matchup comes on Thursday, September 5, against Cal. State Dominguez Hills at 3 p.m. AKST.

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