After losing a close first set, the Seattle University volleyball team used tough serving and defense, as well as a well-distributed offense, to come back to defeat Utah Valley University, 3-1 (22-25, 25-9, 25-16, 25-21), Saturday afternoon in a Western Athletic Conference contest at the Connolly Center.
After winning the first set, Utah Valley (9-15, 4-4 WAC) scored three of the first four points of the second set, punctuated by a block from Lauren Bakker and Lexi Thompson, but Seattle U responded with a 6-1 scoring run, led by Martina Samadan (Split, Croatia) with two block assists and a service ace. The Wolverines pulled to within one at 8-7 on a kill by Madison Wolford, but the Redhawks dominated the rest of the set, outscoring Utah Valley 17-2, with Matea Mamic (Split, Croatia) leading the way with five kills during that stretch.
The Redhawks took an early 7-3 lead in the third set on a kill by Jelena Vujcin (Becej, Serbia), and then the home team slowly expanded its lead throughout the rest of the set thanks to a 15-of-16 performance in forcing a side out. Seattle U took a timeout late in the third set to settle things down, and then Mamic and Iris Ivanis (Pozega, Croatia) collected three kills apiece down the stretch to give the Redhawks a 2-1 match lead.
A kill by Samadan, a service ace from Vujcin, and a solo block by Kerry Lane (Tucson, Ariz.) allowed Seattle U to score the first three points of the fourth set, and back-to-back kills by Stephanie Stoll (Bellevue, Wash.) increased the Redhawk lead to 21-12. Two blocks and two kills by Wolford allowed Utah Valley to close its deficit to 22-17, and then Kalani Norris earned back-to-back kills to bring the Wolverines to within three, but Mamic closed out the set and the match with a kill.
Samadan led Seattle U with 15 kills, a .500 hitting percentage, five service aces, and nine total blocks. Ivanis notched her fifth double-double of the season with 11 kills and 14 digs, with Mamic collecting 13 kills, 12 of them in the final three sets. Lane earned 49 assists and six total blocks, Vujcin contributed seven kills, three service aces, 10 digs, and three total blocks, and Shelby Babcock (Chandler, Ariz.) helped the Redhawk defense with 12 digs.
“It was a nice team effort today, we really worked hard this week in practice, and it was nice to see some things we worked on come together,” Seattle U head coach James Finley said. “We got outstanding play by our middles Stephanie and Martina today, it was a good defensive effort by several players, and anytime we get 15 blocks in four sets, I am a happy coach.”
Norris led Utah Valley with 11 kills, with Kiahna Steiner earning 10 kills and five total blocks in the match. McKenna Tait led the Wolverine defense with 14 digs, but she had only one service ace as Seattle U’s serve reception was on point Saturday, as Utah Valley earned only two aces as a team and hit just .111 in the match.
Seattle University (9-12, 5-3 WAC) hits the road next weekend, first facing New Mexico State Thursday, Oct. 30, at 7 p.m. local time (6 p.m. Pacific time) before heading to UT Pan American to take on the Broncs Saturday, Nov. 1, at 1 p.m. Central time (11 a.m. Pacific time).