Willamette Volleyball Wins Battle with Puget Sound, 3-1

By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

SALEM, Ore. -- In a volleyball match that featured several big momentum changes, Willamette University gained control at just the right times in three out of four sets to defeat the University of Puget Sound, 3-1, in Northwest Conference action at Cone Field House on Friday, Sept. 30. The Bearcats won 25-23, 8-25, 25-22, 25-18, on their way to a 4-1 record in the NWC, while improving to 5-6 overall. The Loggers fell to 3-2 in the NWC and to 6-7 on the season.

"Tonight's match was really interesting, with several incredibly long rallies and many long runs of points," Willamette Head Volleyball Coach Lily Hallock said. "This team continues to get stronger as a unit and weather those runs without being phased."

Willamette held slim leads of 43-40 in kills and 69-67 in digs. Puget Sound gained an 11-7 margin in team total blocks.

The Loggers hit .132 compared to the Bearcats' .091 for the match. However, the edge for PS was mostly in the second set, when the Loggers earned a .205 hitting percentage and the Bearcats had just three kills and 11 attacking errors. In the other three sets -- #1, #3, and #4 -- Willamette hit .185 with 40 kills, while Puget Sound hit .107 with 29 kills.

Olivia Cadien (So., OH, Mesa, AZ/Chandler Preparatory Academy) topped all players with 19 kills, tied for Willamette's serving lead with three aces, and also provided 12 digs. Emma Porter (Sr., S, Honolulu, HI/Mid-Pacific Institute) supplied the Bearcats with 40 assists and libero Shyla Sato (Sr., Honolulu, HI/Mid-Pacific Institute) contributed a match-high 27 digs to go along with three service aces. Sydney Locke (Fy, MB, Federal Way, WA/Decatur HS) registered eight kills, while Dani Queja (Sr., OH, Ewa Beach, HI/Maryknoll School) was credited with six kills and 11 digs.

"Shyla Sato, with 27 digs tonight, was such an anchor for us in the back row," Hallock said. "She makes tough plays look easy and spectacular plays look possible. A lot of our points are generated by her incredible work in the back row."

Maddie Klopcic and Avery Allemann each recorded nine kills for Puget Sound. Allemann also produced a match-high four service aces. Katelyn Chekian added six kills, while Logan Winn finished with 30 assists. Libero Chloe Akiona-Bannan led the Loggers with 15 digs.

The first set began with Puget Sound scoring six of the first seven points on its way to a 10-3 lead. WU ended the surge with back-to-back kills by Kaitlyn Westby (So., MH, Redmond, WA/Eastside Catholic HS) and Cadien, followed by two service aces from Cadien, cutting the margin to 10-7. The Loggers moved out to a 12-8 advantage on a kill by Klopcic.

Willamette eventually tied the set at 14-14 on a combo block from Porter and Westby. A bit later, Puget Sound held leads of 18-15 and 20-16, but the Bearcats battled back to take a 21-21 lead on a kill by Cadien that completed a 5-1 run. The Bearcats never gave up the lead, although the Loggers earned ties at 22-22 and 23-23. A kill by Locke and a ball-handling error by the Loggers provided WU with a 25-25 win.

The second set belonged to Puget Sound. With Akiona-Bannan serving, the Loggers scored the first 10 points, ending with a service ace. Caiden registered a kill to end the run, but PS extended its lead to 17-3 on its way to a 25-8 victory. Allemann was credited with five of the Loggers' 11 kills during the set.

In the third set, Willamette started strong and took a 13-3 lead. The Bearcats held a slim 5-3 advantage before Sato began to serve. She served on eight consecutive rallies won by the Bearcats. The 8-0 run began with a service ace and Sato added another ace for the fourth point in the run. Cadien contributed two kills. The Loggers put together a comeback that eventually tied the game at 21-21 on a kill by Klopcic. The rally ended after eight consecutive points with Allemann serving. Kills by Cadien of WU and Sarah Olsson of PUS led the teams tied 22-22. The Bearcats closed the set with a combo block from Westby and Lexi Martin (Sr., MH, Bellevue, WA/Interlake HS) and two attacking errors by the Logger.

Willamette grabbed a 4-1 advantage early in the fourth set led by two kills from Cadien on both sides of a kill by Westby, plus a combination block by Westby and Cadien. The Bearcats led 6-3 following a service ace by Cadien and later held a 10-7 edge after a kill by Locke. Willamette owned a slim 11-10 edge after 21 rallies, but pulled away with a 6-0 run as Porter served. The run included two kills by Westby and one kill each from Cadien and Martin. Although Puget Sound moved as close as 20-15, the Bearcats maintained a solid lead and won the set, 25-18.

The Bearcats play at home again on Saturday, Oct. 1 when they will host Pacific Lutheran University. Match time at Cone Field House is set for 6 p.m. (PDT). The match is part of Willamette's Title IX 50th Anniversary celebration. Fans will be able to receive a 50th Anniversary Bearcat sticker while supplies last.