SEATTLE -- Everything they needed was there in the middle two games for the Seattle Pacific Falcons.
They simply needed it sooner in Monday night's volleyball match against Central Washington.
Sarah Risser had 14 kills and 13 digs, Anna Herold came up with 41 digs, and Kylie Johnson had a career-high 10 blocks, but the Falcons fell short of the Wildcats in five games at Brougham Pavilion. Scores of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference contest were 27-25, 25-12, 15-25, 15-25, 15-13.
The match was the resumption of one suspended last Thursday when the power went out at 24-24 in the first game.
The loss dealt a blow to the conference title hopes of the Falcons (16-10, 10-4 GNAC). They are now two matches behind first-place Alaska Anchorage (12-2) with two matches left.
Senior middle blocker Jessica Bettencourt (South Lake Tahoe, Calif.) said there's no secret to how the Falcons have to approach the final two matches of the regular season on Thursday at Alaska Fairbanks and Saturday night at Anchorage.
“Every game has to be that game where we put everything out there. We can't wait around,” said Bettencourt, who contributed seven kills and eight blocks on Monday. “We have to know that every point means something, every game means something. We need to come out on our toes, and we need to have every single girl on her game.”
Falcons coach Chris Johnson said how the Falcons played after their slow start is precisely how they need to play from the get-go later this week in Alaska.
“We have to be proud of the things that we did well tonight,” he said. “Each of them has to figure out for themselves how to come out with the mentality that we had in Games 3 and 4 at the start of Game 1.”
In Monday's decisive fifth game, SPU took a quick 4-1 lead, saw Central Washington rally, but then went back in front, 11-7. It was 12-9 when the Wildcats ran off four straight points to go up 13-12. Sophomore outside hitter Lindsey Wodrich (Richland, Wash./Richland HS) slammed home her 14th and final kill of the night to knot it at 13-13.
Central's Erin Norris put down a kill to give the Wildcats match point at 14-13, then clinched it with a kill that was blocked, but into the net.
“We told them at the break that we had to stay aggressive and hit really hard. We came out and did that in Game 3 and Game 4 and most of Game 5,” Johnson said. “But we made too many hitting errors in that last game. We gave them seven free points (in Game 5), and against a good team, that's too many.”
With the match resuming at 24-all in the opening game, Central closed out that one quickly. It was tied at 25-25 when a pair of SPU errors gave the last two points to the Wildcats. Central Washington then used a four-point run to from 4-3 behind to 7-4 ahead in Game 2, and didn't let up.
“We just weren't swinging hard enough,” Johnson said. “They dug out a couple of hard-hit balls, then we laid off and made it easier on them.”
The Falcons seized the momentum immediately coming out of the 10-minute break, racing to a 6-0 lead in Game 3, and never letting the Wildcats get closer than six. A five-point surge early in the fourth game produced a 9-3 Seattle Pacific advantage that never dipped below four points to force the deciding game.
“It was a mental game, and we came out with fire and passion,” Bettencourt said.
The double-double was the 14th of the season for Risser (Santa Barbara, Calif.). The 10 blocks for senior Kylie Johnson (Tucson, Ariz.) was a career-high. Herold's dig total matched her career high, and put the sophomore libero at 573 for the season. Herold (Bothell, Wash./Shorecrest HS) now is within six of the single-season school record she set last year.
It also was the third time Herold has had 40 or more digs in a match -- and all three have been against Central Washington, including 41 in a five-gamer in Brougham on Sept. 27, 2008.
Freshman setter Shelby Swanson (Kennewick, Wash./Kamiakin HS) had 27 assists, and senior setter Cortney Weedman (Scottsdale, Ariz.) had 24. Weedman heads to Alaska with 986 career assists.
SPU wound up out-hitting Central Washington, .144-.121. The Falcons had 15 more kills (62-47), but the Wildcats made nine fewer attack errors (25 to Seattle Pacific's 34).
NCAA Women's Volleyball
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Brougham Pavilion/Seattle, Wash.
Central Washington 3, Seattle Pacific 2
Game scores -- 27-25, 25-12, 15-25, 15-25, 15-13.
Service aces -- SPU: Priscilla Collings 1. CWU: Marcy Hjellum 4.
Kills -- SPU: Sarah Risser 14, Lindsey Wodrich 14, Amber Johnson 11. CWU: Kady Try 14, Erin Norris 10, Hjellum 10.
Blocks -- SPU: Kylie Johnson 10, Jessica Bettencourt 8, Paige Hoffman 4. CWU: Bri Gregory 4.
Assists -- SPU: Shelby Swanson 27, Cortney Weedman 24. CWU: Carlee Marble 34.
Digs -- SPU: Anna Herold 40, Risser 13. CWU: Brandie Vea 29, Hjellum 26.
Hitting -- SPU .144 (62 kills, 34 errors, 194 attacks), CWU .121 (47 kills, 25 errors, 182 attacks).
Attendance -- 230.
Records
Seattle Pacific 16-10, 10-4 GNAC.
Central Washington 15-10, 7-7 GNAC.
Next match -- Seattle Pacific at Alaska Fairbanks, Thursday, Nov. 12, 8 p.m. PST.
