Cristin Richards (Olympia, Wash.) led Seattle U with 12 kills, plus she earned nine digs, while Sarah Jaeckel (Littleton, Colo.) contributed nine kills. In the final matches of their collegiate careers, Janet Beckerman (Bellevue, Wash.) finished with five kills, Emily Deleissegues (Aromas, Calif.) led the team with 13 defensive digs, and Jamie Mellies (Henderson, Nev.) dished out 30 assists to go along with two kills, five digs, and two blocks.
After struggling in the first two sets, Seattle U stuck with Long Beach State in the third set, using back-to-back kills by Kelly Biette (Brighton, Colo.) and Jaeckel to take a 7-5 lead. Later in the set, the Redhawks went on a 5-2 run to extend their lead to 16-11, but the 49ers answered with a 10-2 scoring run to take the lead late in the set. Consecutive kills by Delainey Aigner-Swesey clinched the set and the match for Long Beach State.
Long Beach State (25-7) was led by Aigner-Swesey and Caitlin Ledoux, who finished with 10 kills apiece, while Haleigh Hampton contributed nine kills and six total blocks. Ashley Lee collected 35 assists, six kills, and eight digs, Janisa Johnson earned six kills and 11 digs, and Lauren Minkel added a team-high 13 digs to the winning effort.
Despite Saturday's result, Seattle U still finished the 2010 season with an 18-13 record, the team's best record as a Division I program. It was a record-setting year for the Redhawks, as Richards became the first SU player to earn at least 500 kills in a single season, finishing with 521 kills, Mellies set the school single-season assist record with 1,262 assists, and Jordan Keller (Mukilteo, Wash.) smashed the school single-season record for total blocks with 169, 62 more than the previous mark.
"This season was full of hard work, and I'm proud of our team for what we've accomplished," head coach Shannon Ellis said.
The nine-match winning streak that extended from Oct. 17 through Nov. 26 tied the school record for the longest winning streak, first set in 2002 (Sept. 6 - Sept. 28) and matched in 2005 (Sept. 8 - Oct. 6). The team also set a school record for highest hitting percentage in a single season at .212 as well as most team blocks in a single year with 292.
Seattle University will lose three letterwinners (Beckerman, Deleissegues, Mellies) to graduation, but the Redhawks will have an experienced squad back for the 2011 season.