Seawolves upend Falcons, claim share of 1st

SEATTLE – Senior setter Calli Scott orchestrated a near-flawless offensive display Thursday night to lead Alaska Anchorage to a 25-17, 25-20, 25-17 sweep of Seattle Pacific in a battle for first place in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference volleyball standings.

The Seawolves (14-7, 6-2 GNAC) notched their fourth straight sweep in October, powered by 31 assists from Scott and a 10-kill, 11-dig showing from sophomore outside hitter Jackie Matthisen.

UAA out-hit its hosts .375 to .139, posting the highest attack percentage in a league match this season by 48 points.

SPU (12-8, 6-2) fell into a first-place tie with the Seawolves despite a match-high 11 kills from Sarah Risser. No other Falcon managed more than five kills.

The Falcons entered Thursday's match ranked No. 6 – one spot ahead of the Seawolves – in the season's first West Region rankings, released earlier Thursday.

UAA surprised the Falcons by jumping to big leads in the first and second sets and not letting up. SPU forged a pair of two-point leads midway through the third frame, but the Seawolves finished the match by taking 11 of the final 14 rallies.

At the end, the stat sheet showed almost perfect balance for UAA, which got nine kills and 11 digs from outside hitter McKenzie Moss, nine kills (.571 att%) and six total blocks from Cortney Lundberg, and .391 hitting from Matthisen. Freshman middle blocker Marie Borowikow nailed seven kills and equaled her best attack percentage at .500.

The victory marked UAA's first sweep of the Falcons since 2002 and was the Seawolves' first such triumph in 17 all-time matches at Royal Brougham Pavilion.

The Seawolves will try to keep their momentum going Saturday when they complete a three-match road trip against regionally 9th-ranked Northwest Nazarene (13-8, 6-3). That showdown begins at 5 p.m. ADT.

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Players Mentioned

#13 Cortney Lundberg: MB; 6' 1"; Sophomore

#RS Jackie Matthisen: MB/OH; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#6 McKenzie Moss: OH; 5' 11"; Freshman

#4 Calli Scott: S; 5' 8"; Junior

#13 Marie Borowikow: OH; 6' 3"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#13 Cortney Lundberg
: 6' 1"; Sophomore
: MB

#RS Jackie Matthisen
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: MB/OH

#6 McKenzie Moss
: 5' 11"; Freshman
: OH

#4 Calli Scott
: 5' 8"; Junior
: S

#13 Marie Borowikow
: 6' 3"; Freshman
: OH