BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Led by three players registering double-digits in kills, the No. 12-nationally ranked Western Washington University volleyball team recorded a three-game sweep over visiting Saint Martin’s on Saturday night in Great Northwest Athletic Conference action on WECU Court in Carver Gym. Game scores were 25-15, 25-19, 25-16.
The Vikings (7-3, 2-0 GNAC) recorded their seventh consecutive victory while notching a 17th straight win inside Carver Gym. Saint Martin’s drops to 2-6 overall and 0-2 in conference play.
“I think we did a good job of getting better throughout the match and playing a little cleaner as the match went along,” said 19th-year head coach Diane Flick-Williams. “We got good production from our middles and Abby (Phelps) was steady as she always is.”
Senior outside hitter Abby Phelps (Manson, WA/Chelan) led the Vikings with a 14-kill, 12-dig double-double, her ninth in 10 matches this season. She also tallied 4 blocks for a match-high 16.0 points.
The combination of Kayleigh Harper (Oak Harbor, WA) and Michaela Hall (Centralia, WA) each recorded 10 kills and helped lead the Vikings to a team .304 hitting percentage with their efficient play in the middle. Harper hit .625 (10 kills, 0 errors, 16 attacks) and also had a team-high 6 blocks. Hall hit .444 (10-2-18) and added 3 blocks.
“The middles are not only effective when it comes to point scoring standpoint, but also that they create opportunities for our pin hitters,” added Flick-Williams. “Michaela (Hall) and Kayleigh (Harper) provide two different types of middle, and both are very tough to defend right now. Michaela is playing within herself and is really turning it on.”
Senior libero Aubrey Stephens (Colville, WA) tied Phelps with a team-high 12 digs, with junior defensive specialist Mae Thungc (Kent, WA/Kentridge) reaching double-digits with 10 digs.
Senior setter Brette Boesel (Brewster, WA) ran the offense with a match-high 37 assists.
Saint Martin’s was led by 12 kills each from senior outside hitter Rachel Gondrezick and senior outside hitter Megan Vernoy. Senior libero Courtney Misner led all players with 15 digs.
The Vikings held a statistical advantage over the Saints in hitting percentage (.304 – .119), blocks (10.0 – 5.0), kills (45 – 30), digs (55 – 47), while the Saints led in service aces (4 – 2).
SET 1 (WWU 25, SMU 15): The Vikings went up 1-0 in the match with a 25-15 opening-set win. WWU hit .424 for the set and was led by 6 kills from Phelps, and 5 each from the middle combination of Harper (.714) and Hall (.625). Western got off to a quick start leading the Saints 7-1, but Saint Martin’s closed the gap to 8-6 by going on a 5-1 run. WWU would rebuild its lead to 15-7 going on a 7-2 run, and closed out the set on a 10-4 run.
SET 2 (WWU 25, SMU 19): WWU went up 2-0 with a 25-19 win in the second set. The Saints held an early lead 6-3, but the Vikings responded with a 10-3 run to gain a 13-9 lead. The Saints used three consecutive blocks to pull to within one point at 17-16, but Western used an 8-3 run to close out the set. Phelps recorded 3 kills, while Thungc and Stephens each had 5 digs.
SET 3 (WWU 25, SMU 16): The Vikings took control of the final set building an early 9-3 lead and led by as many as 12 points at 19-7. WWU closed out the match with a handful of reserves playing, including season debuts by junior middle Joslyn Bopray (Spokane, WA/Lewis & Clark), and redshirt freshmen twins Chloe Biscup (M, Duvall, WA) and Tess Biscup (Opp, Duvall, WA). Phelps finished her double-double performance with 5 kills and 8 digs in the final set.
“It was great to see almost everyone get in there and to see the joy of the team cheering each other on,” said Flick-Williams. “We have great team chemistry and that is really special. How they rally behind each other is amazing.”
The Vikings return to the road next week visiting Northwest Nazarene in Nampa, Idaho on Thursday (7 pm MT/6 pm PT) and Central Washington in Ellensburg on Saturday at 7 pm. Both matches can be followed via live stats and webcast at GNAC.tv.
“We need to continue to get better and really shore up some things to make sure we play solid on the road in tough environments,” said Flick-Williams on the upcoming road trip to NNU and CWU.
