San Jose State (3-6) won three of the first four points of the fifth set, but Seattle U came back, scoring four unanswered points to take an 8-6 lead as the teams changed ends. A kill by Sarah Jaeckel (Littleton, Colo.) gave the Redhawks a 13-11 lead, but Seattle U proceeded to make three straight attack errors, and Taylor Japhet connected on her attack attempt to close out the match in the Spartans' favor.
Cristin Richards (Olympia, Wash.) led the Redhawks with 16 kills, 17 defensive digs, and three service aces, while Jaeckel earned 15 kills, two service aces, and seven digs. Senior Janet Beckerman (Bellevue, Wash.) finished with 11 kills and four block assists, and Jordan Keller (Mukilteo, Wash.) contributed seven kills and a team-high seven total blocks. Jamie Mellies (Henderson, Nev.) dished out 42 assists plus collected eight digs, and libero Emily Deleissegues (Aromas, Calif.) contributed 17 digs to the effort.
Seattle U got off to a sluggish start, falling behind 6-1 in the first set thanks in part to three service aces by San Jose State's Alex Akana. Down 23-8, the Redhawks started showing signs of solid play, as Richards notched a kill and two aces as Seattle U went on a 6-1 run before the Spartans closed out the set on a kill by Hanah Blume.
In the second set, the Redhawks scored four unanswered points to take the early lead. San Jose State came within two at 22-20, but Seattle U recovered and Beckerman closed out the set with consecutive kills to tie the match at 1-1.
Once again, the service game helped San Jose State in the third set, as two aces by Caitlin Andrade, along with three kills from Brianna Amian, helped the Spartans put together an 8-1 scoring to pull ahead, 19-13. A Redhawk service error followed by a kill from Sarah Griest ended the set in San Jose State's favor and gave the home team a 2-1 match advantage.
Thanks in part to two aces and a kill by Jaeckel, Seattle U took an early 6-2 lead in the fourth set. The Redhawks held a solid advantage throughout the set until San Jose State cut its deficit to three at 23-20, but a kill by Beckerman and a Spartan service error clinched the set for Seattle U, forcing the deciding fifth set to be played.
Akana led San Jose State with 14 kills along with five of the team's 13 service aces. Amian collected 10 kills, while Japhet earned nine kills, Krista Miller contributed eight kills and four block assists, Blume notched seven kills, two service aces, and 14 digs, and Griest added five kills and a team-high six total blocks. Andrade dished out 47 assists plus accumulated six kills, three aces, 17 digs, and three total blocks, and Courtney Zellmer and Katie Turner finished with 13 defensive digs apiece.
This is the fifth Seattle University match out of ten so far this season that has advanced to the fifth set, after the Redhawks played only four five-set matches last season. Seattle U finished the weekend with a 2-1 record after victories over Cal State Northridge and Cal State Bakersfield Friday.
Seattle University (4-6) returns to Seattle and prepares for a home match against the Oregon State Beavers Wednesday, Sept. 15, beginning at 6 p.m. at the Connolly Center. Live stats will be available on GoSeattleU.com.