ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The Central Washington University volleyball team (5-4, 1-1 GNAC) fell Saturday afternoon to its rival, Western Washington University (8-1, 2-0 GNAC), in a five-set battle that proved to show everything that a rivalry game comes with.
 
Quoting Head Coach Mario Andaya
"We played some good volleyball and created a lot of chances to score most of the match. WWU converted more points in the 5th set which was the difference. We're growing as a team, and I am glad we are banking these tough matches early in the season."
 
How It Happened
The Wildcats found success early with a set one win before dropping the next two sets due to strong performances from Western. The Crimson and Black then answered with a win in set four to force a fifth set. WWU got its offense rolling and didn't stop as the Vikings finished off the 'Cats in the fifth set 15-11 to break Central's five-game winning streak over the Viks.
 
Huge performances on both sides as Western's Devyn Oestreich (24 kills, 14 digs), Delaney Speer (22 kills, 15 digs), and Adele Holland (34 assists, 12 digs) recorded double-doubles. CWU also had a triplet of double-doubles, with Ellie Marble recording 17 kills and 14 digs, Corinne Westby scoring 12 kills and 14 digs, and Kayleigh-Shay Chang logging 49 assists and 16 digs. Big offensive contributions from the Wildcats also included Ella Bines (10 kills), Scottie Ellsworth (eight kills), and Kailey Willsey (eight kills). Brooklyn Parker made a huge impact on both the service and defensive lines–leading with six aces and 22 digs, while Mackenzie Godden held guard at the net with four blocks, followed by Ellsworth and Willsey with three each.
 
The match started with two quick points from WWU before the teams set into a point-for-point groove. Central hit the first edge, scoring three points to take a 7-5 lead. Western responded with a 5-2 run to take the one-point lead. The Wildcats then answered with three more points to take a 12-10 lead. The 'Cats held their lead for a few rounds before the Vikings found a stride and went on a 5-1 run to make it 17-16 WWU. The teams traded a point each before CWU scored another three points. The Viks then answered with three points of their own. Both teams traded a point, but then Central hit three more points to force set point at 24-22. The Vikings got one more point off a block, but Godden shut the door with a quick kill that won set one 25-23 and gave the Crimson and Black a 1-0 lead.
 
Western didn't waste any time in the second set–going on a 13-5 run to open the set. The teams traded a point before Central got two points but were answered with two for the Vikings to make it 16-8. In true rivalry game fashion, though, the Wildcats then responded with a 7-1 run to make it a two-point game. Both teams traded a couple of points before the 'Cats hit another stride, scoring three to tie it up at 19-19. Trading the next three points, the teams showed a truly competitive contest. Western then scored a pair of points to force set point at 24-22. Godden got another quick kill as Central had a chance, but Emily Vossenkuhl extinguished the fire with a set-winning kill to take set two 25-23 and tie the match one set apiece.
 
Set three began to be extremely competitive as neither team gave the other an edge. Both teams traded points and the lead as the score rose into double-digits. Then, with a narrow 11-10 lead, the Vikings found their chance, going on a 9-1 run to blow the score out to lead 20-11. Central showed that it wasn't going down easily, answering with a 6-1 run to make it a 21-15 score. The teams battled as the Wildcats cut down the lead to three with WWU leading 23-20. Then the Vikings closed out the battle with two huge kills from Oestreich to give Western the 25-20 win and the 2-1 set advantage.
 
Similar to the previous round, the fourth set continued the heavily battled beginning as both teams responded to the other's scoring chances to keep the game close. Then, with the score tied at 9-9, Central's offense came alive, scoring six unanswered points to make it a 15-9 game. Western answered with a 3-1 run to make it a four-point lead, but CWU answered with three more points to extend the lead. The battling continued with the Wildcats taking their lead to 22-16. Then, the Vikings found their chance to strike back and scored five straight points to make it a one-point game. However, the Viks' energy halted, and the Crimson and Black took advantage–scoring the next three points, capped off by a service ace from Parker to take set four 25-21 and force a decisive fifth set for the second match in a row.
 
The competitive nature of the match continued into the fifth round, with both teams contesting the other and holding the score to within two points. However, the Vikings found the first drive and went on a four-point streak to make it a 10-5 game. Both teams went into a steady scoring groove with Western holding the lead. Then, the Wildcats scored a pair of points to cut the lead to three, but the Viks answered with a kill from Oestreich to force match point at 14-10. A bad set from WWU gave Central a glimmer of hope, but Oestreich slammed the door on the 'Cats–scoring her 24th kill to win set five for the Vikings 15-11 and take the match 3-2.
 
Up Next
The Wildcats are home next weekend for a single matchup against the Northwest Nazarene Nighthawks on Saturday, Sep. 27. First serve from Nicholson Arena is set for 1:00 p.m. PDT.