ELLENSBURG, Wash. - The Nanooks volleyball team fell to 10-4, 2-2 GNAC with a three-set loss to the Central Washington Wildcats on Saturday, Sept. 19.
Central's offense was more efficient than the Nanooks as they surrendered just eight errors in comparison to Alaska's 24. The Wildcats swung .309 as a team and kept the Nanooks to an even .100 swing percentage. In the first, the Nanooks posted more kills than CWU, but six more errors played a big difference as CWU took the first 19-25. The Nanooks had 14 kills but added seven errors to Central Washington's 13 and one. Alaska fell behind early, trailing 1-5 out of the gates. They battled back to trail by just one at 10-11, but CWU responded with five-straight to extend their lead back to six. The Nanooks pulled within four down the stretch, but two CWU kills and a Nanooks' error ended the set 19-25.Â
The second set saw Central's efficiency stay as they posted a .294 swing percentage compared to the Nanooks' .086. The Nanooks held an early lead, riding it from a 4-2 advantage to 6-5, but CWU rallied off five points to flip it to 6-10. Similar to the first, Alaska pulled to within one before a Central run pushed the deficit back to seven.
Emma Freeman posted two late kills for the Nanooks in the second, but the Wildcats won four of the final five points to take the second 18-25. The third set was the same score as the second and capped off the sweep for Central Washington. Alaska had 12 kills, once again outkilling CWU, but they surrendered eight more errors than the Wildcats and hit .027 while CWU hit .267. The Nanooks had to play from behind in the third after falling behind early. They pulled to within two at multiple points in the set, but two was as close as they could get down the stretch. After a
Haylee Lyons kill to make it 17-21, CWU won four of the final five to take the third by seven.Â
Inside the Numbers
What's Next
The Nanooks return home next week for two key GNAC matches against Simon Fraser and Western Washington. They face the Red Leafs on Thursday, Sept. 24 at 7 p.m. before facing the Vikings on Saturday, Sept. 26. Thursday is a Canned Food Drive - fans who bring four canned food items or non-perishable items for the Fairbanks Community Food Bank will receive free admission. Saturday is Volleyball Community Day; we will celebrate the Fairbanks volleyball community while also having teams table for youth and player opportunities.Â
Follow the 'Nooks
IG - @NanooksVB
X - @NanooksVB
FB - Alaska Nanooks Volleyball
