Eagles Sweep Corban; Advance to CCC Semifinal
KIRKLAND, Wash. - Northwest University came from behind in the third set to defeat Corban 3-0 (25-17, 25-18, 25-23), in straight sets in the Cascade Conference Championships quarterfinals tonight. The Eagles will advance to the CCC semifinals in La Grande, Oregon, on Friday, November 13.
Northwest U broke a 7-7 tie early in the first set with a 3-0 run and would lead the remainder of the set. Kills by Hannah Hanson and Mattie Jo J...ohnson would give NU a 13-9 lead as they would go on to win set one, 27-17.
Set two would be closer and would see 13 ties. The turning point would come late in the set with the score tied at 18-18. Morgan Pilon would give the Eagles the lead with her kill followed by two attack errors by the Warriors and a service ace by Emmaline Stockton as NU would take a 22-18 lead. Hannah Hanson and Amanda Waterman would close out the set with their kills.
Corban was determined to extend the match and jumped out to a 10-4 lead in the third set. Amber Parker’s kill would see the Warriors leading 14-11. But, Northwest U would slowly chip away at the Corban lead and a Waterman kill, an error by Corban and another service ace by Emmaline Stockton would tie the match at 15-all. CU would regain the lead, 18-16 on Victoria Schroeder’s kill, but NU would come back to tie the set again at 18-18. With the set tied at 23-23, NU would be aided by a Corban attack error and Sydney Schlect would win the set and the match with her kill.
Amanda Waterman led Northwest U with 11 kills with Sydney Schlect adding 10 kills. Morgan Pilon tied for match honors with 33 assists with Emmaline Stockton finishing with 14 digs. Northwest improves to 20-9 for the season. NU hit .212 for the match while limiting Corban to a .101 hitting average for the match.
Corban was led by Amber Parker's double-double of 17 kills and 12 digs. Madison McClain totaled 33 assists and Haley Wells led the Warriors with 14 digs. Corban finishes the season with a 14-13 overall record winning six of their final eight matches of the season.
Said NU coach, Steve Bain following the match, "There was a playoff atmosphere in the gym tonight and I thought both teams played with great energy and emotion. We knew going into the match that we would need to stay focused on our side of the net and execute in the serve-receive game to be successful. For the most part we did that. The players also dialed into the game plan that we presented and stayed on task for the entire match. We are obviously pleased with the result and excited to advance to the semifinals."
Northwest U moves on to the CCC semifinals and will face No. 1 seed Eastern Oregon at 7 p.m. on Friday in La Grande.