The offense of third-ranked Cal State San Bernardino was too much for the Seattle University volleyball team, as the Coyotes earned twice as many kills and three times as many service aces in defeating the Redhawks, 3-0 (30-24, 30-18, 30-24) Friday evening at the Western Washington Invitational at Carver Gym.
Nikole Thompson (Marysville, Wash.) and Haley Bury (Roy, Wash.) each earned eight kills to lead the Seattle offense, with Libby Graff (Beaverton, Ore.) earning seven kills in the match. Emily Powell (Puyallup, Wash.) picked up six kills and five total blocks, sharing the lead in total blocks with Graff and Jamie Mellies (Henderson, Nev.), who also earned 29 assists during the evening.
Defensively, Josie Christiansen (Coquille, Ore.) finished with four total blocks, while freshman Emily Deleissegues (Aromas, Calif.) led the Redhawks with 13 digs. Thompson earned ten digs, Shelly Anderson (Bothell, Wash.) notched nine digs, and Donnelle Nicaise (Enumclaw, Wash.) added six digs and two service aces to Seattle's effort.
Seattle University stayed with CSU San Bernardino (6-0) in game one, taking a 15-12 lead midway through the game before the Coyotes outscored the Redhawks 15-7 to take control of the first game. Despite making only two attack errors in game two, Seattle never had the lead, as San Bernardino scored nine of the final 11 points in the second game to take a 2-0 match lead. The Redhawks were ahead by as many as eight points in game three (14-6) and still held a 19-12 advantage before the Coyotes stormed back, going on a 12-2 run to pull ahead and finish the sweep.
For Cal State San Bernardino, Jessica Granados led all players with 22 kills, while Sharea Drawn earned 18 kills in 28 attempts without an attack error for a .643 hitting percentage. Sara Hoffman picked up 57 assists and three service aces, and libero Meghan Haas led the way with 24 defensive digs.
Seattle University (2-4) continues play in the Western Washington Invitational on Saturday, first facing Cal State Dominguez Hills at 11 a.m. before going against Cal Poly Pomona at 5 p.m. After starting the GNAC schedule at Seattle Pacific and at Northwest Nazarene next weekend, the Redhawks return to the Connolly Center on Thursday, Sept. 13, to face Western Oregon beginning at 7 p.m.