Box Score



NAMPA, Idaho — As the night wore on, the Crusaders just got better and better, and the Falcons simply couldn't keep pace.

After dropping a hard-fought opening set, the Northwest Nazarene volleyball team kept on swinging, pounding — and blocking — its way to a 23-25, 25-21, 25-21, 25-13 win over Seattle Pacific on Thursday night in Great Northwest Athletic Conference action at the Johnson Sports Center to kick off Homecoming 2015 on the NNU campus.
 

"We worked so hard this week in practice and our determination to win has been great all week," said NNU senior right-side hitter Taylor VanValey, who had 14 kills and seven blocks in the win. "We just worked hard tonight and it showed on the court in every game."

Determination showed on both sides of the net in a see-saw opening set that saw the Crusaders (16-9 overall, 13-4 GNAC) grab a 23-22 lead late on a Jenna Caywood kill.

But the Falcons (7-18, 5-12) rallied, turning the momentum with an Ellie Britt kill, then grabbing the first-set win on a pair of NNU miscues.

A determined Crusader team battled right back in the next set, erasing a 19-18 deficit with back-to-back kills by Elayna Rice and Madi Farrell.

Another Farrell kill follow by Kendra Bodine pounding down a ball gave the Crusaders set point, and Bodine — who had 19 kills and 12 digs for NNU — finish off the win with a kill to even the match at a set apiece.

All even, NNU's blocking then took over late in the third set, erasing a 15-11 Falcon lead.

A tandem block by Farrell and setter Hailey Cook trimmed the difference to 15-13, and another tandem block — by Caywood and Bodine — put NNU on top, 18-17.
 

VanValey then stepped up late with a pair of kills, a solo block and a tandem block with Caywood, as the Crusaders finished off the set on a 7-1 run.

"We've been working really hard on our timing with our blocking and we kind of got a little bit closer in set three, and in set four you saw it, we figured out how fast the set was, we got across the net," NNU head volleyball coach Doug English said. "I think that really turned some momentum for us at the end of set three and then it rolled into set four as we kind of figured that out a little bit."

From there the Crusaders pulled away as a Caywood and Bodine block put NNU on top 7-5, a VanValey and Caywood block stretched the lead to 13-6, and a Rice and Farrell tandem block pushed the Crusader lead to 19-10 on route to the win.

Farrell led the blocking error with 10 blocks along with 11 kills, while Rice added six kills, six blocks and 14 digs, Linnea Phillips had 20 digs to lead the defense, and Cook set it all up with 51 assists and 15 digs for the Crusaders, who next host St. Martin's on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. to wrap up Homecoming 2015 at the Johnson Sports Center.

Saturday's match will be a special day as NNU honors nearly 50 years of Crusader volleyball and Hall of Fame inductees Liz (Benear) Nixon and coach Darlene Brasch.  

"It's just a special weekend for us to be around and be here," English said.