Willamette Moves to 6-3 in NWC after Defeating Linfield, 25-13, 25-23, 25-19

By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

SALEM, Ore. -- Willamette University pounded out 16 kills and hit .406 in the first set, as the Bearcats swept past Linfield University, 3-0, in a Northwest Conference volleyball match at Cone Field House on Friday, Oct. 14. The Bearcats won 25-13, 25-23, 25-19, and upped their record to 6-3 in the NWC and to 7-8 overall. Linfield fell to 3-6 in the NWC, 7-9 on the season.

Head Coach Lily Hallock of Willamette picked up her 100th career victory, including five seasons at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse before joining the Bearcats. She is in her third season at Willamette.

The Bearcats accumulated 42 kills during the match compared to 25 kills for the Wildcats. Despite cooling off a bit in the second and third sets, Willamette finished the match with a .190 team hitting percentage. Linfield hit .052 and had more attacking errors (7) than kills (6) in the third set.

"All season this team has struggled with being mentally ready to go and playing aggressively from the first point of the match. We put a lot of focus on that in practice this week and it was satisfying to see it pay off with a great start and 25-13 win in the first set," Hallock said.

Leading the Willamette attack was Olivia Cadien (So., OH, Mesa, AZ/Chandler Preparatory Academy) with 17 kills. Cadien recorded six kills and hit .417 in the first set, before adding five kills in the second set, and six kills in the third set. Dani Queja (Sr., OH, Ewa Beach, HI/Maryknoll School) provided eight kills to go with nine digs and two service aces. Sydney Locke (Fy, MB, Federal Way, WA/Decatur HS) tacked on six kills.

Cadien, Locke, and Kaitlyn Westby (So., MH, Redmond, WA/Eastside Catholic HS) each contributed four block assists, helping WU on its way to 9.0 team total blocks. Also for Willamette, setter Emma Porter (Sr., S, Honolulu, HI/Mid-Pacific Institute) supplied 33 assists and four kills, while Shyla Sato (Sr., LIB, Honolulu, HI/Mid-Pacific Institute) was credited with 19 digs. Willamette achieved six service aces, while Linfield did not register a service ace.

Raelynn Hammock of Linfield topped the offensive chart for the Wildcats with 10 kills and also produced 11 digs. Ellie Mead added five kills. Sydney Downing led LU with 12 digs. Aylea Dixon recorded 11 assists.

Willamette controlled the first set. The Bearcats surged out to a 7-1 lead with one kill each from Queja, Locke, and Cadien interspersed with two combo blocks, plus a service ace by Steele Jasa (Sr., DS/S, Bend, OR/Summit HS), all following an attacking error by Linfield on the first rally.

A bit later, WU's margin reached 11-3 on a kill by Cadien. The Bearcats went on to hold a 19-8 lead on another kill from Cadien. The Wildcats tallied the next three points, but Willamette closed the set with a 6-2 run for a 25-13 win.

The second set was competitive, but the Bearcats never trailed. Willamette took a 6-1 lead after a kill by Cadien and also led 10-5 on a service ace by Porter. Linfield later trailed 17-10, but the Wildcats pulled within 21-19 later in the set on a kill by Mead and then cut the lead to 21-20 on an attacking error by Willamette. The Bearcats increased the margin to 24-21 on a kill by Queja before LU scored the next two points. Queja registered a kill to end the set with WU prevailing 25-23.

During the third set, there were five ties and one lead change. The teams split the first two points before Linfield held leads of 3-1 and 5-3. Then the teams were tied four times from 5-5 through 8-8. Willamette moved into an 11-8 lead with a 3-0 run that included a kill by Porter, a service ace from Queja, and an attacking error by the Wildcats. WU owned a slim 13-11 lead before the Bearcats went on a 7-2 run to take command at 20-13. The Bearcats concluded the match with a 25-19 victory.

Willamette will play at Pacific University in Forest Grove, Oregon, on Saturday, Oct. 15. Match time is scheduled for 6 p.m. (PDT).