SEATTLE – (Oct. 26) A valiant comeback from a two-set deficit fell just short Thursday night in the Connolly Complex as Seattle University volleyball dropped a 3-2 decision to visiting Grand Canyon.
The Western Athletic Conference match dropped the Redhawks to 8-14 overall and 4-5 in league play. The Lopes moved to 8-14 overall and 3-7 in the WAC.
The first set was an offensive battle as both sides hit better than .300 and GCU would escape with a 25-21 win. Behind the arm of freshman Teagan DeFalco, the Lopes kept rolling in the second set, hitting .233 while the Redhawks struggled with just eight kills on 35 attempts to go along with six errors.
DeFalco had nine kills in the first set and 21 through the first three. She would begin to slow, however, as Seattle U gained momentum in the third set. After leading for much of the set, The Redhawks found themselves tied at 23-23, 24-25 and 25-25 before earning back-to-back points to seal the 27-25 win.
The momentum carried into the fourth set as Seattle U pulled away to lead by as many as nine, 19-10, and hold on for a 25-22 victory.
But the tide would turn in the fifth as GCU opened up a 10-5 advantage, forcing a Seattle U timeout. The Redhawks could not find a way back, however, falling 15-9.
Katarina Marinkovic led Seattle U with 22 kills and 10 digs. Anna Palmer added 14 kills and 10 digs while Katarina Glavinic had 11 kills and seven block assists.
Shae Harris would finish the night with 49 assists and Tijana Milojevic collected 16 digs.
DeFalco finished with a match high 25 kills while two other Lopes reached double figure kills.
The Redhawks conclude the weekend WAC homestead on Saturday, Oct. 28, hosting CSU Bakersfield at 1 p.m. in the Connolly Complex.