FAIRBANKS, Alaska (Oct. 1) – Setter
Hannah Trotter dished 27 assists and the Alaska Anchorage volleyball team got double-doubles from each of its outside hitters Thursday to roll past No. 23 Alaska Fairbanks, 25-18, 25-16, 25-16 at the Patty Center.
Playing in front of a near-sellout crowd, the Seawolves (11-6, 4-3 Great Northwest Athletic Conference) outhit their rivals .272 to .059, led by 10 kills and 13 digs from junior
Kyana Gabriel, and 10 kills, 10 digs and a career-high four aces from senior
Lee Ivakina.
The Nanooks (11-6, 3-4) were led by 10 kills from Cori Leavitt as their five-match winning streak in the series came to an end.
"That's the kind of performance that every coach hopes for when you're preparing for a big match," said first-year UAA head coach
Morgan Hooe. "We'll take tonight to celebrate and get refocused immediately for another pair of challenges on the road next week."
With five starters back from the team that lost to UAF in the first round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament, UAA looked motivated from the opening serve, racing to a 7-3 lead with three early blocks. UAA went up 16-8 on back-to-back kills from Ivakina and Gabriel and never let the Nanooks closer than four the rest of the way.
The Seawolves wouldn't trail in the second set either, with Gabriel accounting for five kills. Senior outside hitter
Bella Burney had two kills on two swings and three block assists in the frame, helping UAA to .462 hitting.
Set three was tied eight times in the first 20 points, but UAA pulled away after a 10-10 tie.
Martina Riba and
Emma Beck combined on two blocks during a 4-0 run to take command, and
Elena Hansen served five straight winning points – including an ace – to stretch the lead to 22-13.
Gabriel hit .412 as the Big Island product recorded her fifth double-double, while Ivakina made it three straight double-doubles and six for the season.
Meanwhile, Trotter continued her all-around strong play with an errorless performance, complementing her assist total with three kills on .429 hitting, eight digs and three block assists.
Burney finished with seven kills on .357 hitting and five block assists, and Riba had four kills and six block assists.
UAA won the blocking battle 12-4, registering its most stuffs this season in any length match.
The Seawolves continue a three-match road swing next week with matches at Western Oregon (Thur., 6 pm ADT) and Saint Martin's (Sat., noon ADT). Find links to live video and stats at GoSeawolves.com.
