WILDCATS WIN FIRST TWO AT CWU INVITATIONAL
Central Defeats Academy of Art in Four, Cruises Past Evergreen State

ELLENSBURG (Sept. 3) -- Central Washington University played four hard-fought sets in its win over Academy of Art University, then cruised to a convincing three-set sweep of Evergreen State College in winning its first two matches at the CWU Invitational on Thursday at Nicholson Pavilion.

The Wildcats improved to 5-1 with the two victories on Thursday. They were one of three teams to win both matches on the tournament's opening day, joining Sonoma State and Western Washington. Academy of Art and Walla Walla both split their two matches, while BYU-Hawaii, Evergreen State, and Seattle Pacific were all 0-2 on the day.

In the opening match, Central twice had to go beyond the 25-point mark before winning the set. Included was a fourth-set rally that saw the Wildcats overcome a 24-20 deficit and win 28-26 to cap the 3-1 match victory.

While Central had two two-point victories in that match, both teams had a rather convincing win. The visiting Urban Knights, in just their second year of intercollegiate competition, took a 25-17 win in the second set to tie the match at one, and the Wildcats responded with a 25-15 victory in the third frame.

The Wildcats' service and blocking efforts stood out in their victory over Academy of Art, as CWU finished with eight service aces and 11 total blocks (including six solo blocks) in the match. Junior Bri Gregory (Bremerton) accounted for half (four) of Central's aces, while adding four total blocks. Fellow junior Kristel Baeckel (Gresham, Ore./Sam Barlow HS) added five total blocks including three solos.

Offensively, three Wildcats had 10 or more kills including a team-high 16 from junior Kady Try (Brentwood, Calif./Mead HS). Senior Erin Norris (Spokane/Mead HS) finished with 15 kills, while sophomore Meg Ryan (Spokane/Mead HS) finished with a career-high 11 kills. Setter Carlee Marble (La Conner) had 41 assists and a team-high 22 digs, also adding a pair of solo blocks.

Academy of Art was led by the match-high 20 kills and 17 digs from Dan Wang, while Jelena Jakovljevic finished with 12 kills and 17 digs.

In the final match of the night, Central had 16 players see court time and rested three of its starters for the final two sets, in cruising past NAIA member Evergreen State.

Freshman Marcy Hjellum (Kennewick/Kamiakin HS) led a balanced offensive attack with five kills in reserve action, as 14 of the 16 players to see action had at least one kill. Norris spearheaded a serving barrage that included 10 aces, as the school's career record holder added four more aces to her total against the Geoducks. Gregory finished with four kills and four assisted blocks, and senior Deidre Scheidt (Milton/Fife HS) was credited with a team-high 11 digs after playing the final two sets as Central's libero.

Evergreen State, which fell to 0-5 on the season, was led by the five kills of Kaylani Evans. The Geoducks committed nine more hitting errors (25) than kills (16), finishing with a -.098 percentage -- the lowest by a CWU opponent since opposing team totals were first kept on a consistent basis in 1998.

Central Washington will play two more tournament matches on Friday, taking on Walla Walla University (4-3) at 11 a.m. and Brigham Young-Hawaii (3-2) at 7 p.m.

BOX SCORES:
Central Washington def. Academy of Art 28-26, 17-25, 25-15, 28-26
Central Washington def. Evergreen State 25-7, 25-13, 25-11