FOREST GROVE, Ore. – Lewis & Clark College volleyball twice tied the score in the third set and later cut a five-point deficit to one before falling to Pacific University 25-18, 25-16, 25-21 in a Northwest Conference match Tuesday at the Stoller Center.
THE BASICS
Pacific 3, Lewis & Clark 0 (25-18, 25-16, 25-21)
(Lewis & Clark 4-12, 1-8 NWC)
(Pacific 2-14, 1-8 NWC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Senior
Kaitlyn Jensen led the River Otters with eight kills. She added six digs, a service ace and a block assist. Sophomores
Coco Otto and
Izzy Faulkner shared the team lead with 11 digs apiece.
Senior
Ruby Kuerschner recorded eight assists, six digs, an ace and two kills on two attempts. Senior
Kenzie Edwards added five assists, and senior
Isabel Meleán-Williams finished with four kills.
Lewis & Clark took a 2-1 lead in the first set on consecutive Pacific attack errors. The Boxers scored five straight points on Makenna Ennes' serve to lead 7-2. First-year
Skyler Staab and
Morgan Armitage each recorded a kill as the River Otters cut the deficit to 8-6, but Pacific scored the next four points and later led 24-15. Jensen recorded a kill and an ace, and Meleán-Williams added a kill during a three-point run before Pacific won the set 25-18.
Jensen's kill gave Lewis & Clark a 2-1 lead in the second set. Pacific's Kira Fujimoto then served four consecutive points for a 6-2 lead. First-year
Lexi Musselwhite's kill started a two-point run, but the Boxers led 15-10 before Fujimoto served four more straight points. Meleán-Williams' kill cut the margin to 20-13, and Armitage added a kill on an assist from senior
Abbi Sanchez. Kuerschner's kill made it 24-16 before Pacific won the set 25-16.
Pacific scored the first five points of the third set. Armitage recorded a kill, and senior
HB Schuett served an ace during a three-point run that cut the margin to 7-5. Lewis & Clark cut the deficit to 11-10 with blocks by three pairs: Staab and Jensen, Staab and Musselwhite, and Schuett and Musselwhite. Kuerschner's ace tied the score at 11-11, and Jensen's kill tied it again at 12-12.
The Boxers scored three straight points to lead 20-15. Lewis & Clark then won five of the next six points, including kills by Jensen and Schuett during Kuerschner's service turn, to cut the deficit to 21-20. Pacific led 24-20 before Armitage and Schuett combined for a block. Quinn Freitag ended the match with a kill.
Freitag led Pacific with 13 kills and a .458 hitting percentage and added two block assists. Emma Velcheck recorded eight kills, Kayla-Jane Padayao had 18 assists and nine digs, and Isabelle Darnell finished with 12 digs and two aces.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Armitage and Musselwhite finished with three kills apiece.
- Otto added four assists for the River Otters.
- Staab, Musselwhite and Schuett each had two block assists.
WHO'S NEXT
Lewis & Clark hosts Whitworth University in a Northwest Conference match Friday at 7 p.m.
