PORTLAND, Ore. – Western Washington University senior middle Kayleigh Harper capped a historic day with 13 kills and 10 blocks to lead the No. 2 nationally-ranked Vikings to a 3-1 victory over Concordia on Saturday afternoon on LCEF Court in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.

WWU remained perfect at 12-0 overall and improved to 4-0 in GNAC play with the four-set victory over the Cavaliers. Game scores were 20-25, 25-20, 25-19, 25-16 in favor of the Vikings. WWU has now won 42 consecutive conference matches dating back to the 2017 season and overall has won 42 of its last 43 contest going back to last season.

Harper (Oak Harbor, WA) recorded the 13-kill, 10-block double-double on a .345 hitting percentage. With her sixth career double-digit block performance, Harper now has 507 career blocks to set the all-time WWU record, passing the 504 by Tanya Price (1995-98). The two-time All-American also became the second player in both WWU and GNAC history with 1,000 kills and 500 blocks in a career.

"I am beyond proud of Kayleigh. She has grown so much and has put in the work to be good at what she does," said WWU head coach Diane Flick-Williams. "The best part is that the season is still young and she has a lot left to achieve. She is a dynamic player on offense and defense, and these milestones show just how valuable she is to our program."

In addition to Harper's big performance, redshirt freshman outside hitter Calley Heilborn (Auburn, WA/Auburn Riverside) had 13 kills and 24 digs for her ninth double-double in 12 matches to open her collegiate career.

Sophomore outside hitter Gabby Gunterman (Lake Stevens, WA) added a 10-kill, 17-dig double-double, while tying her career-high with 4 service aces. Gunterman has seven double-doubles this season.

Redshirt freshman Malia Aleaga (Burien, WA/Kennedy) led all players with 46 assists and neared triple-double territory with a career-high 7 blocks and 9 digs.

"We certainly came out with a slow start but credit Concordia for putting us in that situation," said WWU head coach Diane Flick-Williams. "I am proud of our response and how we got better throughout the match. We had great contributions from our bench who came into the match ready to play and added a spark that helped lift us to victory."

Concordia (4-7, 2-2 GNAC) was led by a match-high 14 kills from Zoe DiNardo and 34 digs from Callie Wilkins.

Overall, the Vikings hit .259 for the match, including .381 in the second set and .471 in the clinching fourth set.   WWU recorded a season-high 15.0 blocks, holding a 15-4 advantage over the Cavaliers. 

The Vikings face a quick turnaround hosting Simon Fraser (6-6, 2-2 GNAC) on Tuesday night in Carver Gym, with first serve at 7 pm. WWU will also play Montana State Billings in a road match on Friday at 7 pm MT/6 pm PT.

Senior All-American middle Kayleigh Harper made history on Saturday with her 10-block performance, becoming WWU's all-time leader in total blocks with 507 in her 109 career matches (390 sets). Harper passed Tanya Price, who had 504 blocks during her four-year career from 1995-98.

Harper joined Price in the elite club as the only Vikings with 1,000 kills and 500 blocks in a career. Harper is 8^th in WWU history with 1,114 career kills (2.86 per set). She joins Northwest Nazarene's Madi Farrell (2014-17) as the only other player in conference history with 1,000 kills and 500 blocks in a career since the conference started in 2001.

VB🏐 | And Kayleigh Harper is now the all-time @WWUVolleyball leader with 507 career blocks, passing Tanya Price (504 from 1995-98) for the program record. 

Congrats on a historic day Kayleigh!#WeAreVikings pic.twitter.com/iDdZM476VZ
— WWU Athletics (@WWUAthletics) September 28, 2019

VB🏐 | In today's match vs. Concordia (3-1 win), senior middle Kayleigh Harper joined an elite club as the second player in both @WWUVolleyball and #GNACVB history with 1,000+ kills and 500+ blocks in a career. 

Congrats Kayleigh! pic.twitter.com/zvwvpGBE2W
— WWU Athletics (@WWUAthletics) September 28, 2019

Kills - Harper (13), Heilborn (13), Gunterman (10)

Aces - Gunterman (4), Lologo (2), Heilborn (1)

Blocks - Harper (10), Aleaga (7), Roetcisoender (5)

Assists - Aleaga (46), Lologo (3), Roetcisoender (1)

Digs - Heilborn (24), Gunterman (17), Woodruff (14)

Points - Harper (18.5), Heilborn (15.0), Gunterman (14.0), Roetcisoender (8.0)

The Vikings (12-0, 4-0 GNAC) return home to host Simon Fraser University on Tuesday with first serve at 7 pm on WECU Court in Carver Gym. WWU has won its last 33 matches in Carver Gym and carries a 42 match winning streak in GNAC play.

WWU is 12-0 on the season, marking the second-best start in program history trailing only a 13-0 start to the 2008 season.

The Vikings have now won 42 of their last 43 matches dating back to last season. WWU is also 69-8 (.896) dating back to the start of the 2017 season.

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 seven seasons and 13 of the last 18 dating back to the 2001 season. The winner of nine Great Northwest Athletic Conference championships, Western won the 2018 GNAC title with a perfect 20-0 record and the 2017 championship by posting a 19-1 league. Led by 20^th-year head coach Diane Flick-Williams, the Vikings 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 2015).