Lady Yotes fall to 1-1 in Pool C Play at NAIA Championships
Defending Champs Stop C of I in Sioux City
Mike Safford - C of I
SIOUX CITY, Iowa - Golden State Athletic Conference Player of the Year Martina Gregusova recorded a match-high 15 kills, as three-time defending national champion Fresno Pacific remained unbeaten in Pool C action, defeating The College of Idaho 25-12, 25-18, 25-18, at the NAIA Volleyball National Championships, presented by the Siouxland Sports Medicine Foundation, inside the Tyson Events Center.
The No. 3 ranked Sunbirds (31-2) held The C of I to a season-low 24 kills and 33 digs, while pounding out 48 kills and a .393 hitting percentage to move to 2-0 in Pool Play. The Coyotes fall to 1-1 in Pool Play, tied with Taylor (Ind.), who swept winless Shawnee State (Ohio) in three sets.
Set 1 saw FPU break a 2-2 tie with an 11-3 run, as the Sunbirds got six of 13 Keke Wang kills in the frame. The middle set saw the Lady Yotes (24-6) score the first three points and grab a 6-3 lead on a Ciciley Fox kill, but back-to-back combo blocks as part of a five-point Sunbirds push, gave FPU the lead for good. The C of I was within 14-13, but a Gregusova kill started a five-point run to put the set away. Set 3 was more of the same, as the Yotes led 7-3 on a FPU hitting error, before the Sunbirds took advantage of four Coyote hitting errors in a 7-0 run to take the lead. Leading just 12-11, Gregusova took over, slamming down a trio of kills in a 6-0 run to break the set open.
Lisa Shilling had nine kills and four blocks in the win, with setter Erica Adachi recording a match-high 38 assists. Libero Mariah Mandelbaum had 19 digs for FPU.
Naomi Reimer continued her outstanding tournament, recording eight kills, seven assists, and seven digs in the loss, with Fox logging six kills and Madie Machurek notching ten assists and seven digs.
The C of I will close out Pool C play tomorrow with a 1 p.m. (CT) match-up against Shawnee State (Ohio). Fans can follow the Live Stats of the match online at http://www.cbulancers.com/liveStats/liveStats.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=8100&KEY=.
With a win, the Yotes can secure no less than a three-team Pool C tiebreaker – they can clinch a spot in the single-elimination bracket play with a win and a Taylor loss to Fresno Pacific. A loss may not eliminate The C of I, as a Taylor loss to FPU would force a three-way playoff to determine the second berth from Pool C into bracket play.
It has not been a banner tournament so far for the other Northwest teams, as Southern Oregon was swept in three sets late last night by Embry-Riddle (Fla.), Lewis-Clark State was defeated last night by Point Loma Nazarene (Calif.), and Rocky Mountain has dropped a pair of Pool Play matches.