The team and fans sing the fight song after the win.
Geoducks Beat Knights, End Losing Streak
The Evergreen State College put an emphatic end to a frustrating series of five-set Cascade Collegiate Conference volleyball losses on Friday night with a 25-21, 29-27, 21-25, 25-21 victory over Warner Pacific inside Costantino Recreation Center.
The Geoducks (5-11 overall, 2-7 CCC) had taken four consecutive five-set defeats, three against nationally ranked opposition, prior to tonight's win against the visiting Knights (4-5, 4-5).
As has been the case in recent matches, the threesome of Natalie Taylor, Chloee Hunt and Bethanie Nelson led the offensive attack. Taylor finished with 21 kills while hitting .300, Hunt had 10 kills and a .429 mark, while Nelson ended up with 16 kills and a .306 attack percentage.
Matalasi Laban and Ashtyn Bagby combined for 48 assists while sharing setting duties, while on defense Tori Wegdahl finished with 24 digs and Tasha Hungate recorded one solo block and five block assists.
Janessa Mast, the conference leader in kills per set, got it going after a slow start and led the Knights with 18 kills. She was the only visiting player in double figures, however, as Warner Pacific hit just .141 for the match.
The Geoducks came out strong from the outset, hitting .273 behind five kills apiece from Taylor and Hunt to take the opening set. With Taylor getting two kills and both Nelson and Hungate getting one apiece, Evergreen pulled away from a 20-20 tie for the win.
After amassing one kill and three attack errors in the first set, Mast showed why she is one of the conference's top attackers with eight kills in the second set. She played a key role in the Knights rallying from a 14-8 deficit to eventually knot it at 17-17. The two teams went back and forth until an Alexis Garrison service ace, followed by a double block from Nelson and Hunt, gave the Geoducks the second set.
Warner Pacific didn't pack up the bags, instead leading from the outset in taking the third set. The Knights led 23-11 before the Geoducks put together a spirited rally that built momentum for the fourth set. They managed to get within three points at 24-21 before Lauren Tennyson finally ended the set with a kill.
Still, the momentum clearly had jumped to the Evergreen side, and the Geoducks pulled away from a 9-9 tie with five straight points in the fifth set. They led by as many as six points in the late going before settling for the 25-21 set win, and with it the match.
Both teams play tomorrow night, the Geoducks hosting Multnomah and the Knights facing Northwest University in Kirkland.