SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. – The Western Washington University volleyball team opened the postseason with a straight sets victory over the University of Hawai'i Hilo in the quarterfinal of the NCAA Division II West Regional on Thursday in The Den.
The No. 2 seed Vikings defeated the No. 7 seed Vulcans 26-24, 25-15, 25-23 to advance to the West Regional semifinal facing No. 6 seed Azusa Pacific on Friday with first serve set for 5 pm. APU defeated No. 3 seed Cal State LA 3-0 in Thursday's early match.
WWU was led by 13 kills from sophomore outside hitter Gabby Gunterman, who also contributed 4 blocks in the victory to finish with a team-high 14.5 points. Senior All-American middle Kayleigh Harper added 7 kills and 9 blocks and redshirt freshman outside hitter Calley Heilborn tallied 9 kills and 11 digs.
Senior libero Mae Thungc finished with 11 digs and redshirt freshman setter Malia Aleaga guided the offense with 40 assists. Twins Chloe Roetcisoender (6 kills and 4 blocks) and Tess Biscup (7 kills, 1 block) also were big contributors in the win.
The Vikings hit .344 for the match (44 kills, 11 errors, 96 attacks) and held a decisive 18-9 advantage in blocks. The victory improved the Vikings to 27-2 overall, with an 18-1 record in matches held away from Bellingham.
UHH was led by a match-high 16 kills from All-West Region outside hitter Bria Beale. The Vikings defense limited UHH to a .127 hitting percentage. The Vulcans ended their season with a 23-8 overall record.
Kills - Gunterman (13), Heilborn (9), Harper (7)
Aces - Heilborn (2), Thungc (1), Lologo (1)
Blocks - Harper (9), Roetcisoender (4), Gunterman (3)
Assists - Aleaga (40)
Digs - Thungc (11), Heilborn (11), Gunterman (4)
Points - Gunterman (14.5), Harper (12.5), Heilborn (11.0), Roetcisoender (10.0), Biscup (7.5)
WWU is making its eighth consecutive and 14th overall trip to the NCAA II Championships in program history. The program is now 22-13 all-time in NCAA Tournament play and has advanced to the NCAA II West Regional Championship Match in each of the last four seasons (2015, 2016, 2017, 2018). Advanced to the NCAA II National Championship match last season, the second time in program history to play for a national title (also in 2007).
WWU is 2-1 all-time vs. UHH, defeating the Vulcans in five sets earlier this season (23-25,25-23,23-25,25-19,15-10) in the D2 West Region Showcase and today in the NCAA II Championships.
WWU claimed its third consecutive Great Northwest Athletic Conference Volleyball Championship finishing the 20-match conference season with an 18-2 record. The Vikings also won titles in 2017 (19-1) and 2018 (20-0) for a combined record of 57-3 over the last three seasons in GNAC play. This marks just the second time in the 19-year history of the GNAC that a program has won three consecutive league titles, with the 2001-03 Vikings the only other instance. It was also WWU's 10th title in the 19-year history of the league.
Fans can follow WWU Volleyball online at WWUVikings.com/VB, and via social media on Twitter (@WWUVolleyball), Instagram (@WWUVB) and Facebook (@WWUVolleyball). All home matches feature a live webcast, as well as most road matches, with links on how to follow the games available at WWUVikings.com/Live.
The WWU volleyball program has risen to elite level by advancing to the NCAA Division II Championships in each of the last eight seasons and 14 of the last 19 dating back to the 2001 season. The winner of 10 Great Northwest Athletic Conference championships, Western won the 2018 GNAC title with a perfect 20-0 record, the 2017 championship by posting a 19-1 league and is a 3-peat champion with an 18-2 mark this season. Over the last three seasons (includes 2019) the Vikings have combined to go 84-10 overall and 57-3 in conference play, and over the last five seasons are 134-24. Led by 20th-year head coach Diane Flick-Williams, the Vikings have posted a 202-39 record over the last eight seasons (.838 winning percentage) and have played in the NCAA II West Region championship match each of the last four seasons (2015-18), winning titles in 2015 and 2018. WWU played for the NCAA II national championship in 2007 and 2018, both national runner-up finishes, have advanced to the NCAA Final Four in two of the past four seasons (2015 and 2018).
