Pirates Open Second Half of NWC Schedule on Three Match Streak
SPOKANE, Wash. -- Whitworth University begins the second half of the 2009 women's volleyball schedule this week with matches at Willamette University (Friday) and Linfield College (Saturday). The Pirates hope to continue the momentum gained during their current three-match winning streak. Whitworth improved to 7-12 overall and 3-5 in the NWC after winning at Whitman College and Pacific University last week. Last Wednesday the Pirates hit .289 as a team, the highest team hitting percentage in a match since early September, in a 25-12, 25-23, 22-25, 25-16 win at Whitman. Kaimi Rocha (So., OH, Pukalani, Hawaii) had 15 kills and 14 digs, while Morgan Veleke (Sr., OH, Kennewick, Wash.) added 11 kills. Whitworth won its first match of the season on an opponent's home floor. Saturday Whitworth pulled out a see-saw 25-15, 21-25, 25-15, 20-25, 15-11 win at Pacific (Ore.). The Pirates scored the final five points of the match after the Boxers had grabbed an 11-10 lead. Ka'ipo Rocha (So., MB, Pukalani, Hawaii) had 11 kills, while Kaimi Rocha add 10 kills to lead the Bucs. Randy Stephens (Jr., MB, Bozeman, Mont.) was in on eight blocks. Big Blocker: Randi Stephens has been Whitworth's most effective defensive player this season. She is averaging 1.02 blocks per set, which currently ranks fourth in the individual NWC statistics leaderboard. Sizzling Schwada: Tracy Schwada (Sr., RS, Whitefish, Mont.) has gotten hot during the NWC schedule. She currently leads the conference in hitting percentage for NWC matches only with a mark of .376. The Opponents: Willamette University comes into the week 5-11 overall and 2-6 in the NWC after dropping a pair of matches last weekend. The Bearcats lost 3-2 at George Fox on Friday, then fell 3-0 at league-leading Pacific Lutheran on Saturday, fighting hard in all three sets. Senior outside hitter Jessie McGraw is still among the NWC leaders in kills per game (4th at 3.3) and digs per game (3.8, 8th). Willamette won the first meeting of the season with Whitworth, taking a 25-10, 25-21, 18-25, 25-15 decision in the Fieldhouse on September 19th. Linfield College dropped to 6-9, 3-5 last week after a 3-0 loss at Puget Sound on Friday and a 3-2 loss at home to Lewis & Clark on Saturday. The Wildcats are aiming to end a four-match losing streak. Senior Emily Vuylsteke is third in the conference in hitting percentage (.299), while sophomore Samantha Lau leads the league in digs per set (4.7). On September 18th Linfield won 25-17, 21-25, 25-22, 25-12 at Whitworth in the conference opener for both schools. Coming Up: Next week Whitworth will return home to host George Fox (Friday) and Lewis & Clark (Saturday). |
