PORTLAND, Ore. – For the second time this season, the Lewis & Clark College volleyball team won the second set over Whitworth University, and unfortunately, the match ended with the same result: a 3-1 Northwest Conference setback.
THE BASICS
Whitworth 3, Lewis & Clark 1 (25-15, 23-25, 25-18, 25-21)
(Lewis & Clark 6-12, 1-9 NWC)
(Whitworth 11-7, 8-2 NWC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Senior
Izzy Willis recorded her ninth career double-double and seventh of the season with a match-leading 15 kills and 12 digs, while fellow senior
Katie Shimaura recorded over 300 digs for the second consecutive season with her 19 in the match.
The Pioneers made a strong showing to start the match and took a 10-8 lead on a Willis kill in the first set. Then the Pirates stormed in, went on a 13-1 run, and closed out the match 25-15.
After Whitworth tied the second set at 3-all, Lewis & Clark started their own run. The Pioneers forced the Pirates' first timeout when junior
Ella Ruark recorded her first collegiate solo block and made the score 8-3. Fellow junior
Annika Traxler extended the lead to 10-3 on her third kill of the set, and then a Willis kill later pushed the Pioneer lead to 12-5. Whitworth would fight their way back to within 14-10 before the Pioneers went on another run and a Traxler kill would make it 19-12. A block by junior
Emily Strand and freshman
Ruby Kuerschner would give the Pioneers a 22-16 advantage late in the set, but the Pirates used a 5-0 run to make it 22-21. Willis recorded her own solo block to make it 23-21, and a few points later, Traxler sealed the win for the Pioneers with a kill.
Whitworth took a 6-0 lead to begin the third set, but another block by Strand and Kuerschner would cut the lead to 8-6. A little later, freshman
Christi San Diego would pull the Pioneers within 12-11 on her third kill of the match. The Pirates would utilize a 9-1 run to pull away. With a set point on the line and the score 24-14, Lewis & Clark went on a 4-0 run, including two service aces from junior
Bethany Ballesteros, before Whitworth would end the set.
The two teams traded leads to start set number four. Lewis & Clark would take an 11-10 lead after Willis and Traxler knocked down back-to-back kills. Whitworth then went on a 6-2 run that ended with another Traxler kill. Lewis & Clark would get no closer than three points the remainder of the match as kills by Willis would make the score 17-14, 20-17, and 22-19. Ruark helped the Pioneers make a last stand with a kill to pull within 24-20. She then teamed up with San Diego for a block on the next point and forced a Pirate timeout at 24-21.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Shimaura currently has 301 digs this season and 962 in her career. She recorded 335 digs a year ago and is 17 digs from moving into fourth place in program history for career digs.
- Ruark tied her career highs in kills (3), digs (3), and total blocks (3) with tonight's performance.
- San Diego has notched 23 total blocks in the last four matches; the middle blocker had 10 total blocks in her previous 13 appearances.
- Willis leads the NWC with 221 total kills and is third in the conference with 3.51 kills per set.
WHO'S NEXT
The Pioneers make their final trip to Tacoma this season as they play Puget Sound on Friday at 7:00 p.m.
