Scoreboard

Seawolves sweep aside #5 Lopers

Women's Volleyball UAA Media Relations

Seawolves sweep aside #5 Lopers

ANCHORAGE – Senior Katelynn Zanders slammed 11 kills and setter Morgan Hooe piloted a highly efficient Alaska Anchorage offense Friday with 33 assists to power a 25-16, 25-17, 25-23 upset of No. 5 Nebraska Kearney in the SpringHill Suites Invitational volleyball tournament at the Alaska Airlines Center.

The Seawolves (3-0) got nine kills from senior right-side hitter Julia Mackey and seven kills from senior middle blocker Caitlin Hanson as both players hit .500 individually and helped the team to a .316 attack percentage.

The victory was UAA's second over a ranked opponent in five hours, following Friday's earlier 3-1 win over No. 23 Rockhurst. It also snapped a four-match losing streak against nationally Top 5-ranked opponents, dating back to a neutral-court win over No. 2 Cal State San Bernardino in Sept. 2010.

The Lopers (1-1) – who return five starters from last year's 27-4 club – could manage only .104 hitting as no visitor earned more than seven kills. UAA also dominated at the net, outblocking UNK 13-2.

After hitting .400 through the first two sets, the Seawolves cooled off slightly in the third and faced a late 23-20 deficit when a Zanders attack went long. But UAA would respond with back-to-back kills by Zanders and junior middle blocker Erin Braun, and the same duo combined to stuff UNK's Bailey Sokolowski for a 23-23 tie. After a Lopers timeout, Braun found the deep corner, and Zanders finished the 5-0, match-ending run with a kill on Hooe's 33rd and final assist.

Braun collected a match-best nine total blocks to end just one shy of her career high, along with six kills. Freshman outside hitter Leah Swiss also helped the offensive numbers with six kills on errorless hitting (.375), seven digs and two aces. Freshman Kyla Militante-Amper – seeing her first start at libero – collected a match-high 16 digs and dished a pair of assists.

The Lopers – who won the 2001 SpringHill Suites Invitational – play a pair of contests Saturday to close their latest trip to Alaska, facing Cal Poly Pomona (1-1) at 11:30 a.m. and Rockhurst at 5 p.m.

Meanwhile, UAA can clinch the tournament title with either a win over Cal Poly Pomona in Saturday's 7:30 p.m. finale, or with a Pomona loss against UNK.

SpringHill Suites Invitational
2015 Standings
(Round robin – through 6 of 10 matches)
Team              W L  SW SL
Alaska Anchorage  3 0   9  2
Rockhurst         1 1   4  3
Nebraska Kearney  1 1   3  5
Cal Poly Pomona   1 1   3  5
Azusa Pacific     0 3   5  9

Thursday's Results
Alaska Anchorage 3, Azusa Pacific 1
Friday's Results
Rockhurst 3, Cal Poly Pomona 0
Nebraska Kearney 3, Azusa Pacific 0
Alaska Anchorage 3, Rockhurst 1
Cal Poly Pomona 3, Azusa Pacific 2
Alaska Anchorage 3, Nebraska Kearney 0
Saturday's Matches
9:30 a.m. – Azusa Pacific vs Rockhurst
11:30 a.m. – Nebraska Kearney vs Cal Poly Pomona
5 p.m. – Rockhurst vs Nebraska Kearney
7:30 p.m. – Cal Poly Pomona vs Alaska Anchorage

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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

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