SPU-Hawaii Hilo box score, play-by-play
       SPU/BYU-Hawaii box score, play-by-play

LAIE, Hawaii – This time, the Seattle Pacific Falcons weren't about to let Hawaii Hilo make another volleyball comeback.

Sarah Risser, Lindsey Wodrich and Paige Hoffman all registered double-doubles, and redshirt freshman Nikki Lowell had a career-high eight blocks on Friday night, helping undefeated SPU turn aside the Vulcans in the opening match of the Hawaii Invitational, 3-1.

Game scores in the Cannon Activities Center at Brigham Young-Hawaii were 25-11, 26-24, 22-25, 25-18.

The Falcon then made it a two-match sweep on the first day of the two-day tournament, dispatching Brigham Young-Hawaii in three games, 25-11, 25-17, 25-22.

Seattle Pacific's 6-0 start is the second-best in school history. The best was 7-0 by the 2003 team, and the Falcons can tie that if they beat Chaminade on Saturday at 5 p.m. PDT in Honolulu. SPU finishes the tournament at Hawaii Pacific at 10 p.m.

STAYING ON TOP
Last fall, Seattle Pacific took the first two games of a non-conference match against Hilo in Brougham Pavilion before the Vulcans came back to win it in five.

On Friday, SPU again won the first two games, then bounced back from a Game 3 loss to close out the match.

“They do have that confidence, especially after they had been down against Sonoma State (before finishing a three-game sweep last Saturday), and they were down five points in Game 2 here and came back,” Falcons coach Chris Johnson said. “They just believe that we can win out of any situation – and that's good, because I believe it, too.”

Senior outside hitter Risser (Santa Barbara,Calif.) hammered 19 kills and came up with 13 digs, giving her four kill-dig double-doubles in five matches this season. Junior outside hitter Wodrich (Richland, Wash./Richland HS), the Most Valuable Player last weekend after helping the Falcons win all four of their matches at the season-opening Seawolf Spike, had 13 kills and 17 digs, along with three blocks. Junior outside hitter Hoffman (Encinitas, Calif.) logged 12 kills, 15 digs, three blocks and two service aces.

Although middle blocker Lowell was playing just her fifth match as a Falcon, she doubled her previous career high for blocks, having collected four last Friday against Cal State Stanislaus. She also had 11 kills and hit .250 against Hilo.

Sophomore setter Shelby Swanson (Kennewick, Wash./Kamiakin HS) set up 49 assists, Junior libero Anna Herold (Bothell, Wash./Shorecrest HS) collected 28 digs.
“We were solid all the way around,” Johnson said. “We scouted their hitters pretty well, and we were able to play good defense against their hitters right from the start.”

In fact, on the first point of the match, Wodrich and Lowell combined to get a block against Hilo's Kawena Cubi-Otineru, one of its top hitters. That set the tone, and at 1-1, SPU ran off the next 11 points, with Hoffman serving on the last 10 of those. The string included two service aces by Hoffman, two kills apiece by Wodrich and Lowell, and another combined block by that pair.

The Falcons were down 20-15 in the second game, got back into a 21-21 tie, found themselves down double-set point at 24-22, but scored the last four to win it, the final one on a Herold service ace. The Vulcans (3-2) turned the tables in the third game with a four-point run to clinch it.

Down 16-15 in Game 4, Seattle Pacific racked up eight in a row, with Wodrich serving the final seven. Lowell and Risser had two kills each, and Lowell combined with Swanson on two blocks. A Wodrich kill sealed the match.

KEEPING THE SEASIDERS AT BAY
Seattle Pacific was in charge virtually from start to finish against BYU-Hawaii (2-4) in the nightcap on the Seasiders' home court. The Falcons hit a stratospheric .516 in Game 1 (18 kills-2 errors-31 attacks), building leads of 8-2 and 17-6, hammering 18 kills with just two errors. They took command again in Game 2, going up 13-6 and 21-10.

The third game was closer throughout, but SPU maintained the edge and finished it off.

Swanson posted her second assist-dig double-double of the season, with 38 of the former and 10 of the latter. Herold collected another 18 digs, and, along with the 28 she had against Hilo, now as 1,334 as she moves ever closer to the school career record of 1,552.

SPU hit .233 for the match, its second-highest mark of the season, and limited BYU Hawaii to just .097 – the second time it has kept an opponent below .100 this year.



NCAA WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL
Hawaii Invitational
Friday, September 10, 2010
Cannon Activities Center/Laie, Hawaii

Seattle Pacific 3, Hawaii Hilo 1

Game scores – 25-11, 26-24, 22-25, 25-18.

Service aces – SPU: Paige Hoffman 2, Anna Herold 2, Holly Mueller 2. UHH: Two players with 1.
Kills – SPU: Sarah Risser 19, Lindsey Wodrich 13, Hoffman 12, Nikki Lowell 11. UHH: Hillary Hurley 20, Kawena Cubi-Otineru 14.
Assists – SPU: Shelby Swanson 49. UHH: Katie Swenson 28.
Digs – SPU: Herold 28, Wodrich 17, Hoffman 15, Risser 13. UHH: Patty Vine 18, Cubi-Otineru 16.
Blocks – SPU: Lowell8, Swanson 4, Hoffman 3, Wodrich 3. UHH: Hurley 4, Rachael Thornquist 3.
Hitting (kills-errors-total attacks) – SPU: Lowell 11-4-28--.250, Risser 19-8-59--.186, Hoffman 12-4-43--.186, Wodrich 13-5-43--.186, SPU 59-22-185--.200. UHH: Thornquist 6-1-27--.185; Hurley 20-9-65--.169; Cubi-Otineru 14-8-41--.146; UHH 44-25-180--.106.
Attendance – 100.

Records
Seattle Pacific 5-0,0-0 GNAC. Hawaii Hilo 3-2, 0-0 Pacific West.


Seattle Pacific 3, Brigham Young-Hawaii 0

Game scores – 25-11, 25-17, 25-22.

Service aces – SPU: Lindsey Wodrich 3. BYUH: None.
Kills – SPU: Sarah Risser 15, Paige Hoffman 11. BYUH: Lauren Hagemeyer 13.
Assists – SPU: Shelby Swanson 38. BYUH: Lacey Chase 13.
Blocks – SPU: Nikki Lowell 4. BYUH: Hagemeyer 3.
Digs – SPU: Anna Herold 18, Swanso 10. BYUH: Nobuko Kotoyori 23, Losaline Faka'osi 14.
Hitting (kills-errors-total attacks) – SPU: Lowell 8-2-17--.353; Risser 15-4-32--.297; Hoffman 11-2-33--.273, SPU 42-14-120--.233. BYUH: Tara Huckvale 6-1-13--.385, Hagemeyer 13-5-34--.235, BYUH 31-19-124--.097.
Attendance – 290.

Records
SPU 6-0, 0-0 GNAC. BYUH 2-4, 0-0 Pacific West.

Next match – Seattle Pacific at Chaminade, Saturday, 5 p.m. PDT; Seattle Pacific at Hawaii Pacific, Saturday, 10 p.m. PDT.