Liz Myers had 21 kills in the Yotes two matches
Lady Yotes Open Season with Four-Set Setbacks
Mike Safford
LA MIRADA, Calif. – The College of Idaho volleyball team opened the 2013 season with a pair of four-set defeats to nationally-ranked opponents on Day 1 of the Red Lion Summer Slam tournament inside Chase Gymansium.
The Lady Yotes (0-2) were upended by No. 16 Westmont in their morning match 16-25, 25-23, 25-22, 25-14, then fell to fourth-ranked Biola 13-25, 25-17, 25-19, 25-23 on their home court.
In the early match, the Yotes cruised to a Set 1 victory – hitting .286 as a team, using a pair of six-point swings to take command. C of I fell behind 4-0, as the Warriors (2-0) got a pair of combo blocks from Ciena Colburn and Marie Trudelle. The Coyotes responded, getting back-to-back Lili Brochado aces in a 6-1 run to take a 13-9 lead, then took advantage of four Westmont errors in a six-point swing to extend the lead to 20-13 and cruised to the set victory.
From there, the California side took control. In Set 2, an 8-0 run, keyed by a pair of kills from both Trudelle and Ciara Turner, along with three C of I errors erased a 9-6 Yote lead. The Purple and Gold closed within 24-23 on an Emily Ottinger kill, but a Turner spike closed out the set to even the match.
Set 3 was back and forth, with a three-point run giving the Yotes a late 21-19 lead. Trudelle and Turner came through for Westmont, each recording two spikes in a decisive 6-1 push to grab the set. The clincher in the fourth set was a 10-point run by the Warriors, getting three Madison Serrano aces and five C of I errors to break open a 10-7 game.
Kylee Nawahine had 11 kills, nine digs, and four blocks – four of the kills in Set 1. Liz Myers had 10 kills and three blocks, Ottinger had nine kills in her C of I debut, Sierra Porter had 37 assists and nine digs, with Janel Porter recording 13 digs.
Trudelle had 12 kills and six blocks for Westmont, with Turner adding nine kills, and Serrano adding eight kills and 14 digs.
In the featured match of the evening, the Yotes stunned the home crowd in the opening set – as three Nawahine kills and two Brochado aces fueled a 12-2 run to erase a 7-6 deficit, as C of I rolled to an opening win.
Set 2 was tight through the first 20 points, as the teams plated to eight deadlocks. All-American Amy Weststeyn took over, recording three straight kills in a five-point run to overcome a 10-9 C of I lead, as the Eagles (2-0) evened the match. Biola had an 18-16 lead in Set 3, but it was Weststeyn again – scoring the next four points on three kills and a block, to help her team to the set win.
Set 4 was a see-saw affair, featuring 15 ties, with the Yotes taking a 21-20 lead on a Kylie Porter kill. Weststeyn answered with back-to-back kills to give Biola a lead they would not relinquish, winning the match on a C of I service error.
Weststeyn led all players with 16 kills – hitting at a 50-percent clip. Alyssa Mason had 13 kills, Chelsee Arnitz had 12, and Graccee Gallarda had 46 assists and 11 digs for the Eagles.
The Yotes were paced by Myers, who had 10 kills and a match-high six blocks. Brochado added nine kills, Nawahine had eight kills and seven digs, with Sierra Porter recording 33 assists and 11 digs.
The C of I returns to action tomorrow, meeting The Masters at Noon (MT) and Vanguard at 6 p.m. (MT)