Northwest Downs Concordia in Five
PORTLAND,Ore.— Up two games to one, Northwest University staved off Concordia University to emerge with a 3-2 (24-30, 30-28, 30-25, 25-30, 15-12) conference road win at the Cavalier Gymnasium on Oct. 20.
With the win, the Eagles moved to 5-11 on the season with a 4-10 Cascade Collegiate Conference record. Concordia dropped to 13-11 overall and 8-6 in the CCC.
Lauren Holtz led the Eagle attack with 20 kills, most of which were realized after a pass from teammate Tarah Patrick, who provided 49 assists in the five-game 2 hour and 21 minute-marathon.
Down 19-21, the Cavaliers pushed back with an 11-3 run to steal the opener while Northwest rallied from an 11-6 deficit in the following game behind five kills by Holtz and Laura Peterson.
Utilizing the newfound momentum, the Eagles surged to a 19-10 lead in the third game before a Holtz ace sealed the win. Looking to close the match out, Northwest once again started strong, generating an early 8-3 lead, but the Cavaliers responded with five kills and two aces by Raluca Dinca to square the match at two.
Trailing once again by an 8-3 margin, Concordia snuck back in the match with three kills by Erika Doremus to even the decisive game at 12. The Eagles would respond with the final three points via a block by Gina Lubanovici and Lauren Simpson, a kill by Holtz and a setting error on the Cavs to halt the rally.
Mariana Toscano led Concordia with 20 kills. Desiree Fuhrmann recorded 46 assists and Rachel Cotter grabbed 27 digs for team leads.
Concordia returns to action Oct. 26 when they travel to Eastern Oregon for the first of a two-match road trip. The Cavs continue the drive east with an Oct. 27 match against The College of Idaho. Both matches are scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.