Coyote comeback foils 'Wolves in regional semis

ANCHORAGE – Senior Alexandra Torline blasted 30 kills a freshman Jayann DeHoog dished 62 assists Saturday to lead 22nd-ranked Cal State San Bernardino to a 26-28, 21-25, 25-17, 25-16, 15-12 comeback victory over 9th-ranked Alaska Anchorage in the NCAA Div. II West Regional Volleyball Championships semifinals.

The host Seawolves (27-3) were led by a career-high 25 kills from freshman Leah Swiss as their 12-match winning streak came to an end in front of 2,256 fans at the Alaska Airlines Center.

The Coyotes (28-5) got a double-double from Torline, who added 18 digs, and fellow outside hitter Lauren Nicholson, who collected 21 kills and 15 digs. With its victory, CSUSB advances to the West Regional final for the 14th time in 15 seasons, following a one-year absence in 2014.

In addition to Swiss's big performance – which included 13 digs – the Seawolves got 15 kills and 15 digs from senior right-side hitter Julia Mackey, but the Great Northwest Athletic Conference champions were unable to overcome the absence of GNAC Player-of-the-Year Katelynn Zanders, who suffered a sprained ankle in Friday's 3-2 regional quarterfinal win over Dixie State.

Senior middle blocker Caitlin Hanson added 10 kills and junior middle blocker Erin Braun had nine kills on team-best .500 hitting, along with seven block assists. Freshman Kyla Militante-Amper was solid along the back row as well, tallying a career-high 30 digs.

The Seawolves finished the best campaign in school history with program records for most victories (27), fewest losses (3) and best winning percentage (.900), while also establishing the first top-10 national ranking in the program's 36 seasons.

CSUSB will take the court at 4 p.m. Sunday for the West Regional final against No. 2 seed Western Washington (25-5).

Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

#6 Julia Mackey: RS; 5' 11"; Freshman

#14 Katelynn Zanders: OH; 5' 9"; Freshman

#15 Erin Braun: MB; 6' 0"; Freshman

#8 Caitlin Hanson: MB/RS; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#7 Leah Swiss: OH; 6' 0"; Freshman

#3 Kyla Militante-Amper: L/S; 5' 3"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#6 Julia Mackey
: 5' 11"; Freshman
: RS

#14 Katelynn Zanders
: 5' 9"; Freshman
: OH

#15 Erin Braun
: 6' 0"; Freshman
: MB

#8 Caitlin Hanson
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: MB/RS

#7 Leah Swiss
: 6' 0"; Freshman
: OH

#3 Kyla Militante-Amper
: 5' 3"; Freshman
: L/S