ELLENSBURG, Wash.—The Central Washington volleyball team sent out seniors Leanna Shymanski and Kylee Yamashita with a big 3-1 win over the Montana State Billings Yellowjackets to close out their regular season.
 
"It was a terrific way to end the season. Two competitive teams going at it, especially the way we fought through it in the end. It's a good storybook ending for Leanna Shymanski and Kylee Yamashita to come out there and play the way they did, I'm super proud of them for that." Said CWU Head Coach Mario Andaya.
 
Ashley Kaufman did major damage for the 'Cats offense alongside Tia Andaya picking up her 7^th triple-double of the season. Kylie Thorne had a huge game with twelve kills and seniors Leanna Shymanski and Kylee Yamashita tied Marianna Payne with three blocks each.
 
"Super proud of our team rallying around those guys and the energy that they brought. The adversity we faced was high, Billings played incredible and their offense was tough to stop. Luckily, we found ways to get a stop and pick up some kills, but again it was a great team effort to really rally behind our seniors."
 
The 'Jackets and 'Cats came out swinging in the opening set with the end of the season closing in. Both sides fought through multiple equalizers ending with a 10-8 'Jackets lead.
 
Tia Andaya landed a huge kill from the right side and the 'Cats had found their footing. Ashley Kaufman had a big kill from behind the line and the 'Cats put together a three-point scoring run followed by another five-point run.
 
Joelle Mahowald and the 'Jackets found four more points on kills, but the 'Cats had shut the door on set one and took it 25-17 on a kill from Leanna Shymanski.
 
Set two continued to be a grudge match early. Both sides exchanged a flurry of kills until the 'Cats broke it open on a four-point run capped off with a kill from Leanna Shymanski. The 'Cats were in the driver's seat, 14-10.
 
The 'Jackets stung back, but a seven-point run by the 'Cats quickly relieved the pressure. The 'Jackets found a six-point run late in the set, but Kylie Thorne slammed the door shut with a huge swing from the left side, 25-19.
 
In the third set the 'Cats stumbled early, creating a momentum shift that was tough to overcome. A slew of attack errors propelled the 'Jackets to an early 9-5 lead.
 
The 'Cats picked up a few more thanks to kills from Kylee Yamashita and Marianna Payne alongside service aces from Kayla Skipworth and Tia Andaya, but the 'Jackets wound up taking the set 25-16.
 
Set four was a grind, and was seemingly following the momentum of the 'Jackets. The 'Jackets had taken the early lead 14-12, and held it through most of the set.
 
The 'Cats had pulled within one at 20-19, but the 'Jackets quickly found themselves at set point 24-21.
 
A service error by the 'Jackets gave service back to the 'Cats, and they never looked back. Four straight kills exchanged by Kylie Thorne and Leanna Shymanski was too much for the 'Jackets to overcome.
 
Senior Leanna Shymanski landed the final kill for a storybook ending and the 'Cats won the final set and the match, 26-24.
 
The 'Cats will await the NCAA Division II regional selection show slated for Monday November 22^nd at 4:30 PM PST.