PORTLAND, Ore. – Lewis & Clark College volleyball scored the final four points of the second set to tie the match at 1-1 before Linfield University completed a 25-14, 21-25, 25-22, 25-19 Northwest Conference victory Friday at Pamplin Sports Center.
THE BASICS
Linfield 3, Lewis & Clark 1 (25-14, 21-25, 25-22, 25-19)
(Lewis & Clark 4-15, 1-11 NWC)
(Linfield 8-10, 5-6 NWC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Senior
Kaitlyn Jensen led Lewis & Clark with 13 kills and a .229 hitting percentage. She added eight digs, three block assists and an ace. Sophomore
Coco Otto recorded a match-high 21 digs and two aces. Senior
Ruby Kuerschner finished with 16 assists and 13 digs.
Senior
Isabel Meleán-Williams added five kills. Senior
HB Schuett, junior
Morgan Armitage and first-year
Lexi Musselwhite each contributed four kills. Musselwhite also recorded five digs.
Lewis & Clark led 5-3 in the opening set after Jensen's second kill. Meleán-Williams later tied the score at 7-7 before Linfield took the lead. Schuett's kill brought the River Otters within 11-9, but the Wildcats scored five consecutive points to extend their advantage to 16-9.
Jensen followed with a kill and teamed with first-year
Skyler Staab for a block to make it 16-11. Linfield answered with seven straight points before winning the set 25-14. Jensen accounted for five of Lewis & Clark's eight kills in the set.
The River Otters erased a 3-0 deficit in the second set with five consecutive points, including a Schuett ace and a Jensen kill. Neither team led by more than two points again until the final three points. The set featured 14 ties and five lead changes.
With the score tied at 21-21, Jensen put Lewis & Clark ahead with a kill off an assist from Otto. Schuett then served for the final three points. Jensen and Staab combined on a block, a Linfield attack error made it 24-21 and Jensen ended the set with her fifth kill of the set.
Lewis & Clark led 9-7 in the third set after a four-point run that included Jensen's ace. Linfield later scored five straight points for a 13-10 lead. A block by Schuett and Meleán-Williams and kills by Schuett and Musselwhite tied the score at 13-13.
The Wildcats extended their lead to 21-15. Facing set point at 24-19, Lewis & Clark scored three consecutive points, including a Schuett kill, before Tatum Montiel ended the set with a kill.
Linfield scored four straight points on Margaritah Banuelos' serve to take a 7-2 lead in the fourth set. Otto served an ace during a three-point run that cut the deficit to 9-6. Kaarina Geymann later served for four consecutive points to make it 17-8. With the River Otters trailing 23-16, Kuerschner served for three straight points to make it 23-19. Linfield scored the final two points and finished the set with 18 kills and a .270 hitting percentage.
Montiel led Linfield with 21 kills and a .436 hitting percentage. Kaitlyn Hough added 11 kills, and Kinley Deewall finished with 10.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Linfield outhit Lewis & Clark .167 to .051 and held a 52-31 advantage in kills.
- Jensen and Staab shared the team lead with three block assists apiece.
- Senior Abbi Sanchez contributed five digs and three assists.
- The match featured 27 ties and nine lead changes.
WHO'S NEXT
Lewis & Clark returns to action next Friday at Pacific Lutheran University for a Northwest Conference match at 7 p.m.
