Box Score SPOKANE, Wash. – For the second night in a row, the Whitworth University volleyball team was unable to pull off the upset win, falling to No. 15 Pacific Lutheran 3-2 (25-18, 15-25, 19-25, 25-20, 15-11) in Northwest Conference action at Whitworth Fieldhouse on Saturday evening. Pacific Lutheran improves to 10-4 on the season and a perfect 6-0 to lead the Northwest Conference, while Whitworth falls to 9-9 overall, with a 3-3 record in NWC play.
"I told my team that when we do the right things and we're playing relaxed, we are unstoppable and we can compete with anybody," Whitworth head coach Kati Bodecker said. "(Competing) has never really been an issue with us; I think the issue now is finishing. We have all of the pieces of the puzzle, except for the end, that learning how to finish."
Whitworth struggled to find an offensive rhythm in the opening set, as Pacific Lutheran jumped out to a 7-0 lead on a run that featured four Whitworth attacking errors. The Pirates climbed back, as back-to-back service errors from senior Briauna Stadeli made it a 14-12 set in favor of the Lutes, but PLU powered through to claim the set victory. The Pirates bounced back in the second set, as a block from sophomore Nicole Leonard gave Whitworth a 2-0 lead. Despite a PLU run that pulled the Lutes within one, the Pirates used consecutive kills from Stadeli and senior Kristine Kardell, along with a block from Leonard to regain control. Kills from Leonard and Kardell closed the set 25-15 for the Pirates.
Although the Lutes took a 2-0 lead in set three, Whitworth rallied back, taking an 8-6 lead on back-to-back kills from Nicole Leonard to force a Pacific Lutheran timeout. Once Whitworth took the lead, the Pirates kept control, going up 2-1 in the match on a kill from Leonard. The Lutes responded in the fourth set, attempting to avoid their first NWC loss. Pacific Lutheran posted its best hitting percentage of the night, .169, in the 25-20 fourth set victory.
Whitworth found itself in familiar territory, as the Pirates competed in their eighth fifth set of the season and their fifth in the last six matches. In close opening action, the teams tied and traded leads eight times before Pacific Lutheran's Lucy Capron killed a pass form Samantha North to put the Lutes up 7-5 and force a Whitworth timeout. Senior Jalana White came out of the huddle to nail a kill of her own, but Pacific Lutheran was able to make the final run and avoid the upset.
"We are quite familiar with playing in those five set matches. Sometimes learning how to win and winning is a skill; it doesn't just happen," Bodecker said.
Jalana White hit a season-high 23 kills on a .246 hitting percentage to lead the Pirates. Nicole Leonard posted a double-double with 15 kills and 24 digs. Senior Whitney Santos had 28 digs and two aces, while sophomore Maddye Dinsmore recorded 23 digs and 53 assists. Briauna Stadeli served up a season-high six aces and had two blocks for the Pirates.
Amy Wooten and Lucy Capron led the Lutes with 13 and 10 kills, respectively. Amber Aguiar had a match-high 35 digs, while Samantha North served up two aces for PLU. Bethany Huston recorded six blocks, including three solo blocks.
Whitworth returns to action on Wednesday, October 9th as the Pirates host the Whitman Missionaries in Northwest Conference action at 6:00 p.m. in Whitworth Fieldhouse.
