Mendicino Provides Boxers with 11 Kills, as Pacific Sweeps Bearcats

By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

FOREST GROVE, Ore. -- Morgan Mendicino of Pacific University led all players with 11 kills to help the Boxers defeat Willamette University in three sets, 25-16, 25-18, 25-15, in a Northwest Conference volleyball match on Friday, Nov. 4 at the Stoller Center. Pacific earned a .265 team hitting percentage and recorded 42 kills.

The Boxers upped their record to 14-11 overall and to 8-7 in the NWC. Willamette slipped 7-16 on the season, including 5-10 in the NWC.

Willamette will close out the season on Saturday, Nov. 5 by hosting University of Puget Sound at Cone Field House. Match time is scheduled for 6 p.m. (PDT).

Alexa Dowdell (Sr., OH/OPP, Mililani, HI/Maryknoll HS) and Lauren Stiles (Fr., OH, Altadena, CA/Flintridge Preparatory School) each recorded five kills for Willamette. Stiles also provided the Bearcats with 17 digs. WU's Kaylen Higa (So., LIB/DS, Mililani, HI/Punahou School) finished with a match-high 24 digs.

Taylor Lum (Sr., MH/OH, Honolulu, HI/Maryknoll HS) of Willamette achieved three kills and no errors on eight total attacks. She registered a .375 hitting percentage. As a team, the Bearcats registered just 21 kills and hit .034. Each team ended the match with 3.0 team total blocks.

Following Mendicino on Pacific's offensive chart were Karlee Duncan and Bailey Servoss with eight kills apiece. Servoss had no attacking errors on 15 total attacks, as she attained a .533 hitting percentage. Milan Ivkovic and Tiare Kaopua each added seven kills for the Boxers.

Lia Zablan supplied 20 digs for Pacific, while Karissa Komo tacked on 13 digs. Jamie Steach guided the offense by dishing out 35 assists.

The Bearcats and the Boxers were tied at 6-6 in the first set before Pacific scored on three consecutive kills for a 9-6 lead. The Boxers held a slim 12-10 advantage seven rallies later, but increased the margin to 18-11 with a 6-1 run. Mendicino and Duncan each supported the offensive surge with two kills.

Pacific led by at least six ponts for the remainder of the set. The Boxers won 25-16.

In the second set, the teams battled through six ties and five lead changes before Pacific finally prevailed. The Bearcats owned an 8-5 lead following a kill by Riley Fawcett (Sr., OH, Normandy Park, WA/John F. Kennedy HS). A bit later, WU held a four-point lead at 13-9 after Lum pounded down a kill.

Willamette was in front 15-12 five points later. The Blues tallied the next three points to tie the score. The teams also were deadlocked at 16-16, but Pacific zoomed into the lead with five points in a row. Mendicino started the run with a kill, and then Komo earned a service ace. An attacking error by the Bearcats was followed by a kill from Duncan and a kill by Mendicino.

Stiles achieved a kill for Willamette to end the string of points by Pacific. The Boxers responded with the next two points to start a 4-1 run on their way to winning the set 25-18.

The Bearcats used a 5-0 run to gain a 6-3 edge in the third set. The run featured two kills by Dowdell and one kill provided by Emma Liband (Jr., MH, Sandpoint, ID/Sandpoint HS). Pacific countered with an 11-0 run for a 14-6 lead.

WU registered the next two points, and got as close as six points four more times, including 20-14 on a kill by Lum. The Bearcats were unable to fully recover, as the Boxers took the set, 25-15.

Including statistics from Friday night, Dowdell now has 721 career kills, 693 career digs and 147 career total blocks. Dowdell and fellow seniors Fawcett and Lum will be honored at the end of Saturday's Senior Night match against Puget Sound.