Scoreboard

#16 WWU outlasts #10 UAA, 16-14 in 5th

Women's Volleyball UAA Media Relations

#16 WWU outlasts #10 UAA, 16-14 in 5th

ANCHORAGE – Junior middle blocker Erin Braun delivered a career-high 17 kills for 10th-ranked Alaska Anchorage, but the host Seawolves could not convert key points late in the second as fifth sets Thursday as 16th-ranked Western Washington earned a 25-16, 25-22, 15-25, 22-25, 16-14 victory at the Alaska Airlines Center.

The Vikings (15-2, 9-0 GNAC) were led by 18 kills from outside hitter Abby Phelps and 24 digs from libero Bryce Larson as they extended their winning streak to 15 matches and took a two-match lead in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference standings.

Inspired by a record crowd of 1,748, the Seawolves (15-2, 7-2) rallied back from a 2-set deficit and claimed a 10-6 lead in the fifth, but could not repel WWU's final surge. The Vikings tied the fifth 10-10 as serving specialist Arielle Turner – who had not played until that point – sparked a four-point rally, and the Vikings claimed a pair of set points at 14-12. UAA senior Katelynn Zanders answered with back-to-back kills to tie it again, however the Vikings earned the deciding points on a kill by Phelps and a setting error by the Seawolves.

Zanders – who moved into No. 2 on UAA's career kills list – finished with 16 kills and 14 digs for her eighth double-double this year, while fellow outside hitter Leah Swiss had nine kills and a career-high 18 digs.

Despite the loss, it was a big match individually for UAA's middle blockers. Along with Braun's 17 kills on .484 hitting, senior middle Caitlin Hanson matched her career-high with 10 kills and had a team-best six total blocks.

Setter Morgan Hooe dished 51 assists and had 11 digs, and freshman libero Taylor Noga – filling in for injured regular Kyla Militante-Amper – had a career-high 13 digs.

Following their first home loss of 2015, the Seawolves will look to get back on track when they host Simon Fraser (9-8, 5-4) on Saturday in a match that marks the midway point of the GNAC campaign. First serve is set for 7 p.m.

NOTES: Thursday's score was a near duplicate of last year's season finale at the Alaska Airlines Center in which WWU escaped with a 16-14 win in the fifth … Zanders now has 1,258 kills in her four seasons, passing Cherie Knox (1,248, 1987-90) for second place; first place is out of reach as Jen Szczerbinski (1988-92) holds the record at 1,691 … senior right-side hitter Julia Mackey had eight kills to move into No. 7 on UAA's career list, now with 988; she needs 24 more to catch Sabrina Bingham (1,012, 1996-99) for sixth place … Braun surpassed her previous career high of 15 kills, set almost a year to the day, Oct. 16, 2014 at Seattle Pacific … the Seawolf volleyball attendance record fell for the third time in the last four home matches, following crowds of 1,366 against MSU Billings (Sept. 24) and 1,488 against Saint Martin's (Oct. 3) … the Seawolves saw their 5-match win streak against nationally ranked opponents come to an end, now with a 4-1 record in such contests this year.

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Players Mentioned

Julia Mackey

#6 Julia Mackey

RS
5' 11"
Freshman
Katelynn Zanders

#14 Katelynn Zanders

OH
5' 9"
Freshman
Erin Braun

#15 Erin Braun

MB
6' 0"
Freshman
Caitlin Hanson

#8 Caitlin Hanson

MB/RS
5' 11"
Sophomore
Morgan Hooe

#2 Morgan Hooe

S
5' 6"
Freshman
Leah Swiss

#7 Leah Swiss

OH
6' 0"
Freshman
Kyla Militante-Amper

#3 Kyla Militante-Amper

L/S
5' 3"
Freshman
Taylor Noga

#5 Taylor Noga

OH/L
5' 10"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Julia Mackey

#6 Julia Mackey

5' 11"
Freshman
RS
Katelynn Zanders

#14 Katelynn Zanders

5' 9"
Freshman
OH
Erin Braun

#15 Erin Braun

6' 0"
Freshman
MB
Caitlin Hanson

#8 Caitlin Hanson

5' 11"
Sophomore
MB/RS
Morgan Hooe

#2 Morgan Hooe

5' 6"
Freshman
S
Leah Swiss

#7 Leah Swiss

6' 0"
Freshman
OH
Kyla Militante-Amper

#3 Kyla Militante-Amper

5' 3"
Freshman
L/S
Taylor Noga

#5 Taylor Noga

5' 10"
Freshman
OH/L