HONOLULU (Aug. 29) – Larssen Anderson registered 10 kills on career-best .533 hitting to help the Alaska Anchorage volleyball team to its first win of the season, defeating Hawaii Pacific 25-10, 25-13, 14-25, 25-18 on Thursday night at the Shark Tank.

UAA also got eight kills apiece from outside hitters Bethany Tuchardt and Katie Birtcil-Tipton as they bounced back from a straight-sets loss to No. 12 Chaminade earlier Thursday in the Alaska/Hawaii Challenge.

Birtcil-Tipton led defensively with 13 digs and junior outside hitter Tia Allen had seven kills and seven digs, powering a .287 to .109 advantage in attack percentage.

"We played well tonight after a tough match against Chaminade," said UAA head coach Stacie Meisner. "We know when we take care of the ball, we can be dangerous, and we have some offensive weapons for our setters to choose from. Larssen especially had a terrific day, and it's great seeing her on the court again after her injury last season."

UAA took control of the opening set when Allen smashed two kills during an eight-point run to make it 11-3. Anderson had three kills on three swings in the first frame and two kills on two swings in the second as the Seawolves outhit the hosts .425 to .000 over the first half of the match.

The Sharks responded with a wire-to-wire win in the third set, but Anderson – who played in just eight matches last season before a season-ending wrist injury – notched three more kills in the fourth. UAA's balance was on display throughout the final set as it got kills from seven different players.

UAA's setting tandem of senior Kadyn Osborne and freshman Hannah Trotter piloted the offense with combined numbers of 34 assists, four aces and three kills on .300 hitting, while junior libero Madison Galloway kept her double-digit streak alive with 10 digs.

The Seawolves finish play with their third and final match at the Alaska/Hawaii Challenge on Friday, facing Hawaii-Hilo in a neutral-court match at the Shark Tank at 8 p.m. ADT.

Alaska/Hawaii Challenge Match 1: Chaminade 3, UAA 0
Larssen Anderson had nine kills on then-career-best .438 hitting, but No. 12 Chaminade pulled out a wild second set to earn a 25-15, 30-28, 25-15 sweep in the season opener for both teams at McCabe Gymnasium.

The Seawolves got six kills, three blocks and six digs from grad transfer Katie Birtcil-Tipton in her UAA debut, while junior libero Madison Galloway made a match-high 16 digs.

Picked to win the Pacific West Conference title and coming off a 30-win season, the Silverswords were powered by 15 kills and nine digs from Letizia Cammillucci. Setter Grace Talpash dished 21 assists and picked up her only two kills in the final three rallies of set 2.