ELLENSBURG, Wash. (Oct. 31) – The Central Washington University volleyball team extended its winning streak to six games, defeating Western Oregon University 3-1 Saturday evening by set scores of 25-23, 25-17, 18-25, 25-20.
 
The Wildcats improve to 16-5 on the season and sit atop the Great Northwest Athletic Conference with a 12-2 mark.  Western Oregon falls to 7-16, 4-10 in the GNAC.
 
Kaitlin Quirk was the Wildcats most efficient hitter hammering down 12 kills hitting .417 on the evening.  Kiah Jones led the Wildcats with 14 kills followed by Linden Firethorne with 12.
 
Catie Fry tied her career-high with nine kills while handing out 47 assists.
 
In the opening set the Wildcats hit .302 as a team and back to back kills by Jones and Quirk gave CWU the separation it needed in the frame at 20-17.  Fry ended the set with one of her nine kills as the Wildcats took a 1-0 lead in the contest.
 
After trailing 0-1 to open the second set, the Wildcats built a 3-1 lead off kills by Fry and Sabrina Wheelhouse and an ace by Quirk. 
 
Central Washington did not relinquish the lead for the remainder of the set, due in large part to a 4-0 run highlighted by a block by Wheelhouse and Madison Weg.  The Wildcats finished off the stanza on a 5-1 run ending with a Quirk kill to take a commanding 2-0 lead in the match.
 
"Fundamentally we were inconsistent early, and although we won the first two sets we were a bit unstable," CWU Head Coach Mario Andaya said.  "We started to function better late in the match and I was proud how we worked through it and stayed aggressive.  Every conference match is important so every win feels good, but we still need to look upon this and see how we can get better."
 
Things fell apart for CWU in the third set, as they never held a lead in the frame.  Western Oregon hit .393 while the Wildcats hit just .158.  Western Oregon took the set 25-18.
 
"Western Oregon poses certain challenges that we had trouble with, especially in the third set," Andaya added.  "But we found a way to adjust to their pace and style enough to pull out the victory.
 
The CWU offense found its rhythm again in the third set, jumping out to a 3-1 lead on kills by Erin Little and Jordan Deming.  The Wolves battled back to take a 16-15 lead but another 4-0 spurt by the Wildcats gave CWU a 19-16 cushion late in the set.
 
Western Oregon tied the set at 20-20, but the Wildcats finished off the match with a 5-0 run aided by kills from Deming Fry and Quirk to take the match 3-1.
 
Little and Deming were inserted into the Wildcats rotation and combined for eight kills with each player hitting .333. 
 
"I thought Erin and Jordan provided some good offense and energy when we needed," Andaya said about his junior reserves. "Those two came up big for us tonight, which is what a coach hopes for from their reserves."
 
The Wildcats will hit the road as they travel to Alaska to take on Alaska Anchorage on Nov. 5 followed by a matchup with Alaska on Nov. 7.  Both games are slated for an 8 p.m. PST start.