NAMPA, Idaho – The No. 15 nationally-ranked Western Washington University closed out a seven-match road trip earning a four-set victory over Northwest Nazarene Saturday afternoon in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.
WWU defeated the Nighthawks 25-13, 25-27, 25-22, 25-22 to improve to 6-4 overall and 2-1 in GNAC play. NNU dropped to 1-9 overall and 0-4 in conference play.
"We faced a really scrappy team this afternoon in NNU, but I thought we responded well throughout the match," said WWU head coach
Diane Flick-Williams, who is 466-116 in 22 seasons leading the program. "Road wins are tough to come by in the GNAC, so we are happy to leave with a victory."
Junior outside hitter
Gabby Gunterman had a team-high 15 kills on a .294 hitting percentage, recording a double-double also leading the team with 19 digs.
Sophomore outside hitter
Calley Heilborn recorded a 14-kill, 15-dig double-double to finish with a team-high 17.0 points. Heilborn has recorded a double-double in nine of 10 matches this season.
Sophomore setter
Malia Aleaga directed an efficient offense that recorded a team hitting percentage of .263 and dished out 52 assists. WWU had three players with double-digits in kills and five players with 9-or-more kills.
"Malia once again die a really great job at distributing the ball and putting our hitters in good positions to score," added Flick-Williams on her sophomore All-American setter.
Junior opposite
Tess Biscup had 11 kills, twin sister
Chloe Roetcisoender added 9 kills and 4 blocks and junior middle
Olivia Fairchild recorded 9 kills and 3 blocks.
NNU was led by a match-high 23 kills by Natalie Sullivan, who added 11 digs for the double-double.
The Vikings held a 7-4 advantage in blocks and out-hit NNU .263-to-.150.
WWU stormed out to the early match lead winning the first set in decisive fashion 25-13, but NNU battled back to prevail 27-25 in the second set tying the match.
The Nighthawks looked to be in control during the third set leading 5-0, 9-1 and 17-10, but a spirited WWU comeback featured a 15-5 run to close out the 25-22 set to go up 2-1. The Vikings put the match away with an identical 25-22 win in the fourth set hitting .256 in the stanza.
UP NEXT
The Vikings (6-4, 1-1 GNAC) closed out their seven-match road trip (3-4 record) and return home to Carver Gym for six of the next eight GNAC contests, beginning by hosting the Alaska schools next week on WECU Court. WWU entertains Alaska Anchorage (11-5, 4-0 GNAC) on Thursday and Alaska Fairbanks (11-5, 4-0 GNAC) on Saturday, with first serve at 7 pm for both matches.
Admission is free for all current WWU students. Face coverings/masks are required for all fans inside Carver Gym.
WWU STATISTICAL LEADERS
Kills - Gunterman (15), Heilborn (14), Biscup (11)
Aces - Heilborn (2), Gunterman (1), Woodruff (1)
Blocks - Roetcisoender (4), Fairchild (3), Aleaga (2)
Assists - Aleaga (52), Fairchild (2), Woodruff (1)
Digs - Gunterman (19), Woodruff (16), Heilborn (15)
Points - Heilborn (17.0), Gunterman (16.5), Roetcisoender (11.5), Fairchild (11.0), Biscup (11.0)
SERIES HISTORY VS. NNU
WWU improved to 42-9 all-time vs. NNU and extended the winning streak vs. the Nighthawks to seven consecutive matches. The Vikings improved to 19-3 all-time vs. NNU in Nampa and 19-4 all-time in Johnson Sports Center.
SEASON RESULTS
Here is a match-by-match look at the 2021 season through the first 10 matches of the season:
| Date |
Opponent |
|
Score |
Score-by-set |
| 9/3 |
Sonoma State |
W |
3-1 |
26-24,23-25,25-18,25-18 |
| 9/4 |
MSU Denver (#11) |
W |
3-2 |
25-21,24-26,18-25,30-28,15-7 |
| 9/5 |
Chaminade |
W |
3-1 |
25-20,22-25,25-23,25-18 |
| 9/10 |
vs. Wayne State (#17) |
L |
0-3 |
22-25,17-25,22-25 |
| 9/10 |
vs. Lewis (#5) |
L |
0-3 |
16-25,24-26,16-25 |
| 9/11 |
vs. Lynn (RV) |
W |
3-2 |
22-25,25-16,23-25,25-20,15-11 |
| 9/11 |
vs. Cal State San Bernardino (#6) |
L |
2-3 |
23-25,35-33,25-17,21-25,13-15 |
| 9/18 |
at Simon Fraser* (#20) |
W |
3-2 |
25-13,19-25,20-25,25-23,15-9 |
| 9/23 |
at Central Washington* |
L |
1-3 |
13-25,25-19,15-25,23-25 |
| 9/25 |
at Northwest Nazarene* |
W |
3-1 |
25-13,25-27,25-22,25-22 |
RECORD BREAKDOWN
WWU is 6-4 overall and 2-1 in GNAC play, going 0-2 in three-set matches, 3-1 in four-set contests and 3-1 in five sets. Here is a look at Western's record breakdown for the 2021 season:
| 2021 RECORD BREAKDOWN |
| Overall Record |
6-4 |
| Streak |
W1 |
| Home |
3-0 |
| Away |
2-1 |
| Neutral |
1-3 |
| GNAC Record |
2-1 |
| 3-Set Matches |
0-2 |
| 4-Set Matches |
3-1 |
| 5-Set Matches |
3-1 |
| Ranked Opponents |
2-3 |
| Record by Jersey |
| Navy Blue |
2-1 |
| White |
1-0 |
| Light Blue |
2-2 |
| Dark Gray |
1-1 |
FOLLOW THE VIKS ONLINE
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.
ABOUT WWU VOLLEYBALL
Currently in its 50th season as a varsity intercollegiate sport at WWU, the Western 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 became a 3-peat champion with an 18-2 mark in 2019. Led by 22nd-year head coach
Diane Flick-Williams (466-116/.801) the Vikings have posted a 217-46 record over the last 10 seasons (.825 winning percentage) and have played in the NCAA II West Region championship match four of the last five 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, and have advanced to the NCAA Final Four in two of the past five seasons (2015 and 2018).
