NCC Posts First-Ever CCC Win
EUGENE, Ore. -- Northwest Christian College has official hit the win column in Cascade Conference play as the women’s volleyball team defeated Cascade College on Friday night, 30-18, 30-18, 30-12. It is the first CCC win for the Beacons in any sport.
The Beacons (5-2, 1-0 CCC) were led by sophomore Right-Side Hitter Charlie Van Loon, who hit .562 on the evening with ten kills to just one error. She added three blocks, including two in a stellar game-three in which she went 5-for-8 without a mistake. Sophomore Outside Hitter Ashley Blanchfill (Marist HS) did her part, collecting a match-high eleven kills with 14 digs and three blocks.
NCC jumped out to a quick 8-3 lead in the opening game and never trailed, holding the Thunderbirds to just seven kills. Junior Blocker Cotie Howard (Thurston HS) had four kills for the Beacons in the game.
Game two was even more convincing for Northwest Christian. After grabbing a 4-0 advantage, the Beacons went on a 13-1 tear, opening up a 14-point lead before cruising to the twelve-point win. Junior Brooke Stribling (Marist HS) and sophomore Melissa Bishop had each had four kills in the game without a miss.
Cascade began to show some signs of resurgence in game three. The teams came out virtually even, changing leads three times and seeing a tie-score on seven of the first nine points. After a knotted 8-8 score, NCC took over, using a 22-4 run to close out the match.
The Beacons also had solid contribution from Bishop, finishing with seven kills and five blocks. As a team, NCC out blocked the T-Birds 9-4. Alex Jee recorded 23 assists and Mercedes LeClaire dug a match-best 16 balls, coupled with three service aces.
Cascade (0-3, 0-1) was led in defeat by Meagan Stanley and Vanessa Fleetwood, each scoring eight kills. Fleetwood added a team-high 12 digs to the cause. The Thunderbirds were held to a negative hitting percentage on the night, making 42 unforced errors.
Northwest Christian will be back in action on Saturday night when they play host to Warner Pacific College.