Portland, Ore - An important Great Northwest Athletic Conference matchup took place in Portland on Saturday night as the Central Washington University volleyball team faced Concordia (Ore) as the Wildcats conquered the Cavaliers 3-0 (25-23, 25-13, 25-20).
The Wildcats (11-2, 5-1) had their backs against the wall in the late stages of the opening set, as three points separated them them from a loss. Head coach Mario Andaya used a timeout that halted the momentum of the Cavaliers (7-6, 4-2). Soon after, an ace from Kaycee O'Brien sparked a 6-1 run that powered the Wildcats to a tone-setting win.
The Wildcats sprinted to a 12-4 lead to open the second set. The run never stopped as Makala Swart ended the second set with a kill, giving the Wildcats a 25-13 win. The third set was tied at 16 all before the Wildcats used a 9-4 to complete the sweep.
"We competed a lot better tonight and stayed locked in," Andaya said. "The score didn't bother us much which allows us to compete each rally."
Swart was effective on both sides of the net for the Wildcats. She led all players with 14 kills, while adding 10 digs. Shelby Mauritson capped off a fabulous weekend with 10 kills and 15 digs. Madison Weg was extraordinarily efficient, sending home 13 kills on a .458 hitting percentage. Gabrielle Aihara assisted on 39 of the team's 46 kills.
The Wildcats held the Cavaliers to 36 kills, as they were able to make good on just .133 percent of their attacks. Sarah Joffs led the squad with six blocks. Kyla Morgan led all players with 22 digs.
"Maddy was very tough tonight and Gaby did a great job finding her," Andaya said. "Kyla and Shelby were fun to watch back row and gave us several chances to score. Concordia is a good team and we are happy to come out of this weekend 2-0.
The Wildcats return to Nicholson Pavilion for a 7:00 p.m. match when Saint Martin's invades Ellensburg.
