Scoreboard

Seawolves survive in 5 vs. Crusaders, make regional final

Women's Volleyball UAA Media Relations

Seawolves survive in 5 vs. Crusaders, make regional final

ANCHORAGE – Morgan Hooe dished a career-high 60 assists and outside hitter Leah Swiss smashed 21 kills Friday to help top-seeded Alaska Anchorage fend off an upset bid by 5th-seeded Northwest Nazarene and prevail 25-17, 22-25, 25-21, 23-25, 15-10 in the NCAA Div. II West Regional Volleyball Championships semifinals at the Alaska Airlines Center.

The nationally 9th-ranked Seawolves (31-2) also got 15 kills and 19 digs from outside hitter Chrisalyn Johnson as they erased a 9-5 deficit in the fifth set, taking 10 of the last 11 points to advance to the program's first-ever regional final.

Regular-season league champion UAA will face runner-up Western Washington (23-7) in Saturday's all-Great Northwest Athletic Conference final at 7 p.m. AST at the Alaska Airlines Center. The teams split during the regular season, with each winning on the road.

The Crusaders (21-8) were led by 15 kills and six blocks from junior middle blocker Madi Farrell, while outside hitter Kendra Bodine had 13 kills and 17 digs. NNU, which was trying to avenge two regular-season defeats to the Seawolves, was playing in its first-ever NCAA regional semifinal.

UAA seemed on the way to a less dramatic victory with an 18-13 lead in the fourth set before the Crusaders answered with six of the next seven points to tie it. An ace by Bodine and a kill by Cami Heninger gave NNU a 23-20 edge, and the visitors from Nampa, Idaho, earned set point on another Heninger kill.

NNU continued its momentum into the rubber set, taking an 8-4 lead at the switchover and a 9-5 advantage on Bodine's final kill. The Seawolves seemed to flip a switch at that point, however, with Swiss notching four straight kills to tie it, followed by a Hooe/Erin Braun block for a 10-9 lead.

After a Crusader timeout, Braun delivered her 12th and final kill, and Swiss completed an 8-0 surge with another smash. NNU drew within 13-10 on a Braun attack error before the Seawolves clinched it on another Swiss kill and another block by the team's lone seniors, Braun and Hooe.

“These two have been through this (NCAA Tournament play) four times now, so the pressure in that fifth set didn't make them choke because we've been there before,” said UAA head coach Chris Green, referring to the seniors. “We showed a lot of poise in a tough situation tonight.”

In addition to her career-high assist total, Hooe – the NCAA D-II West Region and GNAC Player of the Year – also tied her career high with five total blocks, along with five kills and 14 digs. Meanwhile, Braun accounted for 12 kills, a career-high seven digs a UAA season-best nine total blocks.

Freshmen Diana Fa'amausili and Vanessa Hayes combined for 16 kills and 12 total blocks, while the back row defense was anchored by 24 kills from libero Kyla Militante-Amper and a season-high 17 digs from defensive specialist Taylor Noga.

Swiss finished with 14 digs and Johnson came one shy of her career high with 19 digs as they earned their 12th and 10th double-doubles this year, respectively.

Saturday's 7 p.m. AST West Regional title match can be seen live at portal.stretchinternet.com/uaa.

Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

Erin Braun

#15 Erin Braun

MB
6' 0"
Freshman
Morgan Hooe

#2 Morgan Hooe

S
5' 6"
Freshman
Leah Swiss

#7 Leah Swiss

OH
6' 0"
Freshman
Chrisalyn Johnson

#9 Chrisalyn Johnson

OH
5' 9"
Freshman
Kyla Militante-Amper

#3 Kyla Militante-Amper

L/S
5' 3"
Freshman
Taylor Noga

#5 Taylor Noga

OH/L
5' 10"
Freshman
Diana Fa

#17 Diana Fa'amausili

RS
5' 11"
Freshman
Vanessa Hayes

#18 Vanessa Hayes

MB
5' 11"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Erin Braun

#15 Erin Braun

6' 0"
Freshman
MB
Morgan Hooe

#2 Morgan Hooe

5' 6"
Freshman
S
Leah Swiss

#7 Leah Swiss

6' 0"
Freshman
OH
Chrisalyn Johnson

#9 Chrisalyn Johnson

5' 9"
Freshman
OH
Kyla Militante-Amper

#3 Kyla Militante-Amper

5' 3"
Freshman
L/S
Taylor Noga

#5 Taylor Noga

5' 10"
Freshman
OH/L
Diana Fa

#17 Diana Fa'amausili

5' 11"
Freshman
RS
Vanessa Hayes

#18 Vanessa Hayes

5' 11"
Freshman
MB