SEATTLE — Seattle U volleyball was tripped up on Tuesday, falling at home to conference newcomer Dixie State, 3-1.
Sophia Bertotti Metoyer paced the Redhawk offense, notching team-highs with .324 hitting and 15 kills. The freshman also was one of three Seattle U players to finish with four blocks. Sofia Sanchez and Julia Queiroz chipped in with nine and seven kills respectively.
Ezgi Ozkan reached the 30-assist plateau for the fifth-consecutive match as she dished out 34 helpers. Tijana Milojevic meanwhile hit another milestone as she reached 1,600-career digs, finishing the night with 20.
Collectively, the Seattle U attack struggled as it hit .146 for the match and trailed Dixie State in kills 65-42, while being edged out 67-61 in the digs.
The Redhawks trailed for the much of set one, narrowing the gap to one on a few different occasions but were unable to pull even. Trailing 18-15, momentum began to shift as Queiroz hammered one in, before she and Johnasia Carr teamed up for back-to-back blocks, as the Seattle U pulled even at 18. Eve Kerschenbaum then recorded one of her four kills to nudge SU to a one-point lead. Dixie State though regained an advantage as it responded with a 5-1 run. Down 23-20, Seattle U then surged behind a 5-0 rally to win the opening set. Bertotti Metoyer fueled the comeback, tallying a pair of kills and a block assist.
Down 9-6 in the second set, Sanchez registered back-to-back kills to close the margin two one. The Trailblazers though went on a 6-2 run soon after and pushed out a 15-10 lead. Queiroz, Bertotti Metoyer and Sanchez added to the cause, but the Redhawk continued to trail, 21-15. Another late push by Seattle U saw it string together five unanswered, again pulling within one, 21-20, but the rally was cut short as Dixie State tied the match on a 4-1 run.
In third, Seattle U held a 9-6 lead thanks in part to a 5-1 run. Dixie State then accounted for seven of the next eight points as it moved out to a 13-10 advantage. A kill by Queiroz helped the Redhawks cut the margin to 14-12, but the deficit quickly ballooned to seven as they eventually dropped the frame, 25-17.
Trailing 5-4 in the fourth, Seattle U was overwhelmed by the Trailblazers quickly stretched the deficit to double-digits behind a 10-1 run. Held to a match-low .034 hitting the Redhawks were unable to catch up as Dixie State took the set, 25-12.
The Seattle U volleyball season is scheduled to resume next week as the team travels to face NM State on March 1-2.