Box Score BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The ninth-ranked Vikings lived up to their billing Thursday at home against the upset-minded Crusaders.
Western Washington took control early in the opening set and never let up in a 25-8, 25-9, 25-23 Great Northwest Athletic Conference volleyball win over Northwest Nazarene.
The Crusaders came in as one of the top teams in the league after a strong start to the season, but didn't find their rhythm until the third set.
"In set three we played NNU volleyball and I had hoped we would play like that the whole match," said first-year NNU coach
Doug English.
Instead, the Vikings (10-1 overall, 3-0 GNAC) took control, erasing a match-opening service ace by NNU's
Taylor Roberts with a 7-0 run that set the tone for the first set.
Northwest Nazarene (7-4, 3-2) continued to play catch-up in the second set, getting as close as 5-4 back on a
Taylor Gould ace before the Vikings pulled away for a two set to none edge.
The Crusaders came alive after the mid-match break, showing their form as a tandem block by
Kaitlyn Tuholski and
Andrea Terpstra put NNU in front 9-6.
The two teams traded the lead, with NNU grabbing a 17-16 advantage on a
Taylor VanValey kill, before the Vikings fended off any comeback bid with a late 5-0 run, taking a 21-17 edge en route to the three-set sweep.
NNU's third-set effort showed their potential as NNU had 12 kills and just five errors, but finished the match with a negative hitting percentage as the Crusaders managed just nine kills and had 17 hitting miscues in the first two sets combined.
Elayna Rice led NNU's offense with six kills while
Michelle Terpstra added 19 assists, and a trio of players led NNU's defense as Tuholski had 12 digs, and Roberts and
Linnea Phillips each made 11 digs.
"Linnea came in and did a great job in set three," said English, whose team looks to rebound Saturday night when it plays at Simon Fraser.
Jennica McPherson and Kayla Erickson had 12 and 11 kills, respectively, to lead the Vikings, who hit .308 in the match with 49 total kills and just 12 hitting errors.
