FOREST GROVE, Ore. – Whitworth volleyball cruised to its second Northwest Conference road win of the week with a dominant 25-19, 25-12, 25-15 sweep over Pacific (Ore.) on Saturday night at Stoller Center.
The Pirates (9-2 overall, 3-1 NWC) earned their seventh straight win over the Boxers, who fell to 1-11, 0-5 NWC with their sixth straight loss.
The first set was the closest of the match, much in part to a slow start by the Bucs as they trailed 4-1 early. Neither team led by more than three until Whitworth used a 6-1 run to go up 19-15. The teams traded points until Kaylee Winterroth ended the set with a kill. The Bucs hit .308 in the set and overcame five service errors.
Whitworth was the most dominant in the second set. The Pirates led 7-2 thanks to a kill from Paige McKenzie, then went on to score eight of the final 10 points to take the set 25-12.
The Pirates cruised to a sweep with another strong third set. After leading 10-6, a 7-2 run pushed the score to 17-8 after a kill from Lindsey Short. The Boxers responded with some momentum and scored six unanswered points, capped off by an ace from Uehara Mckenzie. Whitworth answered back and held Pacific to just one more point the rest of the match.
The Bucs hit .295 in the match and had a diverse offensive attack. Winterroth hit .600 to lead the team with 11 kills, followed by Short with eight and McKenzie with seven. Madison Pridon tallied 31 assists and Short led with two aces.
Emma Velcheck led Pacific with eight kills and Isabelle Darnell added six. Whitworth held the Boxers to a .054 hitting percentage.
The Bucs will look to extend their winning streak next weekend at home against Willamette and George Fox.
