Box Score

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Sophomore outside hitter Abby Phelps recorded a 12-kill, 23-dig double-double to lead the No. 3 seed Western Washington University volleyball team to 25-20, 25-22, 26-24 sweep of No. 2 seed Cal State San Bernardino Friday evening in the semifinal of the NCAA Division II West Regional at Alaska Airlines Arena.

The Vikings improved to 23-7 overall with their 18th win in the last 19 matches and will face GNAC rival Alaska Anchorage in the West Regional Final at 7 pm AST/8 pm PT. Cal State San Bernardino ends its season with a 25-5 mark after having its 16-match winning streak snapped. WWU avenged its early-season 3-0 loss to the Coyotes at the D2 West Region Volleyball Showcase.

"We are excited and proud to move on to the next game," said head coach Diane Flick-Williams, who is in her 17th year leading the program. "This is right where you want to be and we are proud to represent our conference in an all GNAC final."

Phelps (Manson, WA/Chelan) recorded her GNAC-leading 18th double-double of the season and third in the last four matches to help lead WWU to its second regional final in as many years. She also had a pair of service aces to finish with 14.0 points.

Junior outside hitter Arielle Turner (Leavenworth, WA/Cascade) also reached double-figures in kills with 10 and added a block and an ace for 10.0 points.

WWU's setting tandem of sophomore Brette Boesel (Brewster, WA) and junior Kristina Tribley (Wenatchee, WA) efficiently ran the offense, finishing with 19 and 18 assists, respectively. Boesel added 4 service aces to tie her single-match career high.

"There is no question I think our setters are the MVPs for us tonight," added Flick-Williams. "Brette and Kristina did a nice job of balancing the offense and putting the ball in a position that got the best swings for our hitters."

Sophomore middle blocker Kayleigh Harper (Oak Harbor, WA) contributed 8 kills, an ace and a block for 10.0 points.

WWU finished with 9 service aces and only 4 errors on the night.

"I thought our serve and pass game was really on point today and it put a lot of pressure on the other team," said Flick-Williams. "As a team we really controlled the service line and were able to create some momentum with our serves."

The Vikings jumped out to the early 1-0 lead with a 25-20 first-set victory. Trailing early in the set 8-5, WWU went on a 5-1 run to gain a 10-9 lead and never looked back. CSUSB closed the gap to 22-19 with a late rally, but the Vikings sealed the game with a 3-1 run. Phelps had 4 kills and 5 digs in the set, while Boesel recorded 3 service aces.

WWU went up 2-0 with a 25-23 win in the second set. After being down 6-3, the Vikings went on a 7-0 run and never trailed again in the set. After WWU built a 21-14 lead, the Coyotes climbed right back into the set going on a 7-2 run to pull to within 2 at 23-21, but the Vikings prevailed. Turner led the way for Western with 5 kills, including the final point of the set.

Western looked to be in control of the third set and well on its way to the sweep leading 18-11, but CSUSB went on a 10-0 run to take a 21-18 lead. The Vikings responded with a 5-1 run to take the lead at 23-22. The set was then tied at 23-23 and 24-24, before a CSUSB service error and attack error gave the Vikings the 26-24 win and the sweep. Phelps had 5 kills and 10 digs in the final set.

"Once we finally sided out we were able to take a deep breath and play the rest of the set point-by-point," said Flick-Williams. "You don't want to go back out there for a fourth set and we gathered ourselves and did a nice job of coming back."

The Coyotes were led by a 17-kill, 13-dig performance by junior outside hitter Lauren Nicholson. CSUSB out-hit the Vikings (.252-.228) and won the battle at the net with a 5.5 to 2.0 edge in blocking, but did not manage to win a game.

Game Notes: The Vikings have now won 18 of their last 19 matches...the win improved WWU to 14-9 all-time in the NCAA Tournament...Western is a perfect 8-0 at the Alaska Airlines Center (3-0 vs. UAA, 5-0 in NCAA Tournament)...WWU is now 17-3 in three-set matches...WWU is making its 10th NCAA II Tournament appearance and 5th consecutive...won at least one match in 6 of the 10 West Regional appearances...Brette Boesel tied her single-match career-high with 4 service aces (also: 9/17/16 at MSU Billings)...the 9 service aces were a season high for the Vikings (had 8 aces 3 times) and the most in a match since also recording 9 last season at Seattle Pacific (11/19/15)...Joellee Buckner recorded 12 digs and her younger sister Aubree had 15 digs...the match featured 17 tie scores (7 in the 1st set, 6 in the 3rd set) and 9 lead changes.