Wolves Strong Effort Not Enough as Raiders Win in Three
Paul Starkebaum, Sports Information Director
College Place, Wash.- Despite a great effort from the Wolves, the attack from the Raiders was too proved too be too much to handle as Southern Oregon University (14-9, 12-8) took the match in three straight sets. Walla Walla (1-19, 0-15) played well at the net, accumulating 17 blocks as a team. The Raiders were equally as impressive on offense and while the Wolves controlled the net much better than they have in other matches this season, Emma Gasman found her way to 14 kills on the night and Taylor Restvedt was second on the team with 11.
Krista Schafer’s served the opening point of the night for the Wolves as they jumped out to an early three to one lead. A kill by Emma Gasman started the turn back in the Raiders favor, giving them the lead four to three. A kill by Lauren Barlow put the Wolves within a point at 9 to 10. Back and forth play followed, but a four point run by Southern Oregon created enough separation for them to take control of the set. This would be a theme of the match, as the Wolves would play even with the Raiders for stretches, and the Raiders would rely on a run to take control. A kill by Taylor Ristvedt would end the set 25-18 in favor of the Raiders.
The second set opened similarly to the first, with both teams taking points and the score staying even. A Kill by Emma Gasman up four to three and sparked a five nothing running by the Raiders. A Maria Darling kill ended the run, however the Wolves failed to get any closer than two points of the Raiders for the remainder of the set. Despite this, the Wolves did make several good plays during the set. A Melissa Barton put back an over on the Raiders to make the score 11-16 after several powerful attacks by the Wolves. A seven to one run would end the match in favor of the Raiders, taking it 25-14.
Similar to the first set, the third saw Krista Schafer’s serve help spark the Wolves early. The Wolves started out up three zero, including an ace from Krista. The Wolves maintained their lead through the early portion of the match, finally overtaking the Wolves at seven to eight. A big hit on the outside from Lauren Barlow tied the set back at nine to nine. From their both teams played even, with the Raiders slowly creeping ahead. Taylor Ristvedt made her presence known with three kills late in the match that helped push SOU to a four-point lead late in the set. Gretchen Litzsinger ended the match with a kill from the outside, as the Raiders won the third set 25-20.
Maria Darling finished the match with team high of seven kills, Lauren Barlow had six kills and 10 digs. Niliah Mata’afa lead the Wolves in assists with 11. The Wolves are back in action tomorrow night against Oregon Tech at 8:00 p.m.