SEATTLE - Seattle University volleyball revisits I-5 foe Portland after coming off its first West Coast Conference victory over the weekend, with the Redhawks (7-16, 1-11 WCC) hosting the Pilots (11-13, 6-7 WCC) at 6 PM at the Redhawk Center on Thursday evening.
The Redhawks snapped its conference losing streak after grabbing the four set victory over the Dons this past Saturday led behind their newly named WCC Freshman of the Week Petra Fritz. Fritz returned to the league's top spot in aces per set, averaging .53 on the season. The outside hitter moved into first place for total aces to tie Pepperdine’s Laine Briggs with 43 aces on the year. The freshman now sits fourth in the Division I era for total aces in a season with six matches left to go, sitting three shy of tying the DI record.
Leading the Redhawks in kills is sophomore Madyn Cervellera. Her 316 kills ranks fourth in the WCC this season, sitting six shy of tying 10th all-time in a season in the DI era for Seattle U. Her 3.40 kills per set also ranks fourth in the conference. The outside hitter has enjoyed a five match double digit kill streak dating back to the end of October.
Cervellera also ranks second on the team and top-15 in the WCC with 216 digs this season, averaging 2.32 a set. The Lake Stevens native has 11 double-doubles in digs and kills so far this season, picking up the 11th over the weekend.
The Redhawks have two more that have surpassed 100+ kills this season, with junior opposite Teagan Melton ranking second on the team with 169. Redshirt junior Yasemin Elmas also ranks amongst the best in the WCC, tallying 134 kills this season.
Elmas is a main pillar for the Redhawk defense, pacing the team with 78.0 blocks this season, a new career season best for the Turkish middle blocker. She ranks top-15 in the WCC averaging .87 blocks per set, while also ranking ninth in total blocks.
Patrolling the floor is freshman Katelynn Albano, who ranks first on the team with 243 digs this season, averaging 2.64 a contest. In addition, Albano has been a pivotal piece from the service line, tallying 29 aces in 92 sets of action. She sits three shy of tying tenth all time aces in a season.
Orchestrating the Redhawk offense is redshirt junior Elif Teksoy. Through 53 sets, the Turkish setter is averaging 6.28 assists per set, a mark that ranks tenth in the WCC. She has amassed 333 assists in 16 matches.
The Redhawks rank amongst the top-five in the WCC with their block, recording 190 through 93 sets. Their 54 solo blocks ranks tied for second in the league, while also claiming second most solo blocks in a single season in the Division I era. Seattle U sits third in the league with 151 aces this year, a mark that now ranks eighth all-time for aces in a single season since 2008.
Thursday marks the 13th meeting between the Redhawks and Pilots dating back to the 2008 season. Seattle U trails the all-time series 3-8, collecting all three of its wins at home. The Redhawks look to capture their first win against Portland since the 2016 season.
Since the pair last met, the Pilots have gone 3-7 over their last ten matches, capturing wins over LMU, Pacific and San Francisco. They split a pair of matches at home last week, sweeping the Lions before falling to Gonzaga in five sets. Seattle U is one of four remaining road contests for Portland this season.
After Thursday’s outing, the Redhawks travel within the state of Washington, trekking East to Washington State for a rematch in Pullman.
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