Bearcats Sweep Pioneers, 3-0, in NWC Volleyball Action

By Mark Colachico, Interim Assistant Athletics Communications Director

PORTLAND, ORE. -- An all-around performance by Willamette University helped the Bearcats earn their first Northwest Conference victory of the season with a three-set sweep over Lewis & Clark College (Ore.) Friday inside the Pamplin Sports Center. The Bearcats won 25-16, 25-22, 25-21.

With the win, Willamette upped its record to 6-5 on the season, 1-1 in the NWC. Lewis & Clark fell to 6-4 overall, 0-1 in the NWC.

After falling behind 3-1 early in the opening set, Willamette surged back with an 8-2 run that included back-to-back kills by Taylor Lum (So., MH/OH, Honolulu, HI/Maryknoll HS) as well as a combo block by Lum and Lindsey Compton (Jr., OH/S, Portola, CA/Portola HS). Alexa Becker (Jr., OH, El Dorado Hills, CA/Rider University) closed out the Bearcats' run with a kill that pushed Willamette's lead to 9-5.

Despite Lewis & Clark pulling within a single point (11-10), Willamette never relinquished its lead extending to as much as nine points (25-16) on a set-ending kill by Alida Holt (So., OH, Honolulu, HI/Roosevelt HS).

The second set would begin with Willamette building a seven-point advantage (13-6) on another combo block by Compton and Lum. Lewis & Clark would battle back to within two points (22-20) before the Bearcats closed out the set on a 3-2 run that was capped by another set-ending kill by Holt for the 25-22 victory.

The third and final set would once again begin with an opening run by Willamette, as the Bearcats pushed their lead to eight points (11-3) on a Lum kill. The Pioneers would use a 10-4 run to pull within two points (15-13) before Willamette jumped out to a seven-point lead (22-15) on a service ace by Peyton Wahl (Fr., L/DS, Richland, WA/Richland HS).

Over the final seven combined points, Lewis & Clark would outscore the Bearcats by one (4-3) only to have a match-ending attack error cost the Pioneers. Holt would get the final kill of the night for Willamette, as the Bearcats earned their first sweep since a victory over Occidental College (Calif.) during the first weekend of September.

Holt and Alexa Dowdell (So., MH/OPP, Mililani, HI/Maryknoll HS) led the Bearcats with eight kills each, while Taylor Gee (Sr., MH/OH, San Diego, CA/Rancho Bernardo HS) and Sarah Fincher (Jr., OH, Reno, NV/Bishop Manogue HS) added seven and six kills, respectively. Compton ran the Bearcats' offense with a match-high 27 assists to go along with 12 digs, while Wahl anchored Willamette's defense with 17 digs. At the net, Lum led all players with seven blocks, as the Bearcats tallied 9.0 total blocks as a team.

Lewis & Clark was led by Isabel Valentine with a match-high 12 kills, while Emily Drake and Vanessa Hall handed out 16 assists each for the Pioneers. Defensively, Alexe Navarro led all players with 25 digs with Tessa Belanger providing five blocks.

The Bearcats will return to action on Friday, Sept. 26, with an NWC match against the University of Puget Sound (Wash.) beginning at 7 p.m. (PST) inside Cone Field House in Salem.