Kearney, Neb. – The CWU Wildcats started the day with a sweep of the Minot State Beavers (25-15, 25-18, 25-14), and an upset attempt fell just short against tenth-ranked home team Nebraska-Kearney (21-25, 25-18, 25-20, 24-26, 10-15) on day two of the Rosella Meier Fall Classic.  
 
"I believe we got a lot out of the matches this weekend to help us moving forward," head coach Mario Andaya said. "We competed hard, but it's tough not to get that last win. The University of Nebraska-Kearney was a good match for us to learn from. Ashley Kaufman and Marianna Payne had big days today. Hannah Stires and Kylie Thorne were great on defense as well.  Alyssa Smith, Emma Daoud-Hebert, and Tia Andaya were huge on the block."
 
In the day's opener, the Beavers of Minot State jumped out to a quick 0-2 lead at the start of the first set. Both teams battled back and forth, as the Wildcats maintained a small lead until the score was 14-11 after a Minot State kill. That's when the 'Cats opened it up, scoring six straight points to expand their lead to 20-11. CWU held the lead, with the help of a couple of Marianna Payne kills followed by a Kaufman kill to end the set with a final score of 25-15.
 
Similar to the opening set, the Beavers opened the second frame with a 1-3 lead, and would keep the set within one point at 10-11. The Wildcats immediately fought back, scoring five straight points of their own to make the score 16-10. The 'Cats didn't let the Beavers get close and a pair of Kaufman kills finished the set, 25-18.
 
A couple of Andaya kills got the Wildcats started in the third set, helping them jump out to a 3-0 lead. The Beavers stayed relatively close, bringing the score to 6-5. Then, CWU won 10 of the next 12 points, jumping out to a convincing 16-7 lead. The gap was too large for Minot State to climb back into the match, and a Thorne kill closed out the set by a score of 25-14.
 
The Wildcats held Minot State to a hitting percentage of .141% and the Wildcats had a hitting percentage of .451%. Payne and Kaufman led the team in kills, both recording nine each. Daoud-Hebert and Thorne had eight kills each. Sydney Remsburg and Andaya led the team in assists (17). Hannah Stires recorded nine digs and Lambrecht logged three aces.
 
In CWU's second match, the No. 10-ranked Lopers took down the Wildcats in the opening set, but a strong defensive effort in the second frame, along with surges on the attack by both Ashley Kaufman and Kylie Thorne, helped Central Washington fire back a convincing 25-18 victory in the second set.
 
The Wildcats continued the momentum into the third set, clicking on offense hitting .459%, and setting up a 25-20 win. The UNK Lopers, who entered the night undefeated with a 3-0 record, fought off a Wildcats match point in the fourth set, and closed out the come-from-behind victory with a 15-10 win in the final set.   
 
Ashley Kaufman led Central Washington with 17 kills, Marianna Payne contributing 15 kills on a team-high .375% for the evening. Defensively for the Wildcats, Alyssa Smith reached a career-high 9 total blocks, supported by Tia Andaya and Emma Daoud-Hebert both posting season highs in total blocks with 8 and 7, respectively.
 
"We enjoy playing and it shows. Adversity is part of this gig, but it is great to see us take it on with a smile," added coach Andaya. "We saw everyone step up at a high level, so we need to feed off that going into a tough tournament in LA."
 
Up next, the Wildcats head to Los Angeles for a four-match regional tournament, starting with Cal State Los Angeles on September 1^st.