The volleyball team hung with nationally-ranked , pushing the match to a fifth game, but the 13th-ranked Wildcats pulled away for a 3-2 victory (30-24, 29-31, 30-20, 28-30, 15-11) over the Redhawks Saturday afternoon at the Seawolf Spike Tournament at the Sonoma State Gymnasium.
Nikole Thompson (, ) earned 21 kills and 22 digs in the match, while Libby Graff (, ) contributed 15 kills and seven total blocks and Haley Bury () added 11 kills, nine digs, and three blocks.
The newcomers once again had a major impact, as setter Jamie Mellies (, ) finished the match with 49 assists, 25 digs, and four blocks, while Heather Gerke () notched 28 digs from the libero position.
’s defense enabled it to stay with , as the Redhawks collected 123 defensive digs, 13 each from Emily Deleissegues (Aromas, ) and Shelly Anderson (, ), and 14 total team blocks, including nine total blocks by Emily Powell (). Josie Christiansen (Coquille, ) also made a significant contribution with eight digs, four blocks, and two service aces.
The Wildcats were led by Gillian Heydorff, who had 26 kills and 24 digs, and Lindsay Macias, who earned 22 kills and 23 assists. setter Erica Brick notched 67 assists and 13 digs in the match, while Wildcat libero Lacy Stringfellows led all players with 41 defensive digs.
(1-2) concludes play in the Seawolf Spike Tournament Sunday, August 26, at 11 a.m. against host school . The Redhawks return to for the home opener against Wednesday, August 30, at 7 p.m. at the .