Northwest's Sarah Stoker goes high for the spike
Concordia Downs Northwest in Three
KIRKLAND, Wash. – Concordia earned the sweep over Northwest University with a 3-0 (25-17, 25-21, 25-20) conference win tonight in the NU Pavilion.
Concordia never trailed in the three sets taking early leads and maintain them throughout. The first set would see the Cavaliers get off to a fast start with a 12-4 lead. A Sarah Stoker kill would close the CU lead to 14-10, but a kill by Jacjie Stein, a service ace by teammate Leslie Hanks and an error by Northwest would increase the lead to 17-10 as Stein would close out the set with a kill.
With Concordia leading 9-6 NU’s Rae Ann Haistings would pull Northwest to within one, 9-8, with her two straight service aces, but the Eagles would then commit four straight errors to give CU a 13-8 lead. NU would make a late run to make it 24-21 on Kills by Olivia VanDlac and Ashton Arbuthnot, but Amanda Goringe would give the set to the Cavs on her set winning kill.
In the final set, an ace by Rae Ann Haistings and an attack error by CU, would cut the Cav lead to 11-10, but Concordia would rattle off six straight points aided by kills by Mariah Raudsepp and Brianna Hogan. That would stop the NU momentum as Concordia would maintain the lead the remainder of the set. Hogan’s kill, an NU miscue and a final Hogan kill would give the Cavaliers their 7
th victory of the season and a 2-0 CCC record.
Rae Ann Haistings led Northwest (5-6, 1-1 CCC) with her 10 kills and 15 digs for a double-double. Ashton Arbuthnot had a team high 26 assists and Leia Roy contributed 14 digs for the Eagles.
Concordia (7-2, 2-0 CCC) was led by Brianna Hogan’s 13 kills and a .367 hitting percentage. Shantel Gritsch had a match high 20 digs and Lindsay Mangan had a match high 37 assists for the Cavaliers. Mangan added 11 digs for her double-double. Jacjie Stein hit .391 and had 11 kills on the night.
"I was impressed with Concordia's balanced attack and their focus and intensity on the court," said NU coach Steven Bain. "And, while I thought our ladies played hard against a very strong opponent, we were unable to match Concordia's physical effort. Our players are resilient and will bounce back and will be better from the experience of playing such a talented team."