LACEY, Wash. – The Western Washington University volleyball team wrapped up their 2023 regular season road schedule by defeating Saint Martin's University in five sets, 20-25, 25-22, 25-23, 23-25, 15-12 Saturday afternoon in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.
WWU's fourth consecutive victory keeps the Vikings in third place in the GNAC with a 11-5 record in conference play (11-13 overall).
After dropping the opening set, the Vikings showcased their strength as a well-balanced team taking set two (25-22) and three (25-23). In the second the defense led the way, holding SMU to a .071 H%, while the offense took over in the third as the Vikings finished with a .471 hitting percentage.
The fourth set ended with a flurry of Viking resolve as they rattled off a 5-0 run to push the Saints to the very end before dropping the set 25-23. The fifth and final set belonged to the Vikings who held off a Saints 4-1 run near the end to earn the 15-12 victory.
"This was a grind of a match against a very good and tenacious team," said WWU head coach Diane Flick-Williams. "Devyn (Oestreich) was stable for us from the start and Gabby went on fire in the third set to gain momentum for us."
Playing near her hometown of Olympia, sophomore outside hitter Devyn Oestreich recorded her 10th double-double of the season with 15 kills and 20 digs. Junior opposite Gabby Kepley caught fire for 15 kills on a .343 hitting percentage. Redshirt freshman outside hitter Delaney Speer anchored the defensive effort with a career-high 24 digs and redshirt freshman Emily Vossenkuhl added a match-high six blocks. Setters Caroline Hansen (24 assists) and Adele Holland (22 assists) ran an efficient offense with a .209 hitting percentage.
"Devyn and Delaney had great defensive efforts again which were needed to match the scrappiness of SMU," added Flick-Williams.
Saint Martin's, which fell to 16-10 overall and 9-7 GNAC, got a 24-kill, 20-dig double-double from Sirena Peredo and 47 assist from Karla Soto.
WWU (11-13, 11-5 GNAC) close out the season next week hosting Northwest Nazarene (Nov. 16) and Central Washington (Nov. 18) on WECU Court in Carver Gym. Saturday will serve as Senior Night for Kylie Honrud and an Alumni Appreciation Event. The complete 2023 WWU Volleyball schedule, with links to statistics, webcasts, live stats and more can be found online at wwuvikings.com/VB.
Kills – Oestreich (15), Kepley (15), Speer (7), Vossenkuhl (6)
Aces – Hansen (2), May (1), Claeys (1), VanderYacht (1), Speer (1)
Blocks – Vossenkuhl (6), Tri (4), Kepley (3), Speer (3)
Assists – Hansen (24), Holland (22)
Digs – Speer (24), Oestreich (20), Holland (8)
Points – Kepley (16.5), Oestreich (16.0), Speer (9.5), Vossenkuhl (9.0)
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. SAINT MARTIN'S
WWU avenged a five-set loss to Saint Martin's earlier this season on October 12 in Carver Gym, which snapped a 46-match winning streak vs. the Saints…Saturday's victory extended the Vikings winning streak to 25 consecutive matches in Lacey and 68-6 all-time in the series.
Here is a look at the statistical comparison between WWU and Saint Martin's:
|
COMPARISON
|
WWU
|
SMU
|
|
Attack Pct.
|
.209 (55-22-158)
|
.179 (62-30-179)
|
|
Kills
|
55
|
62
|
|
Assists
|
52
|
53
|
|
Service Aces
|
6
|
10
|
|
Solo Blocks
|
0
|
1
|
|
Block Assists
|
20
|
12
|
|
Total Blocks
|
10.0
|
7.0
|
|
Tie Scores: 20 Lead Changes: 7
|
Here is a look at Western's record breakdown for the 2023 season:
|
2023 RECORD BREAKDOWN
|
|
Overall Record
|
11-13
|
|
Streak
|
W4
|
|
Home
|
5-2
|
|
Away
|
6-5
|
|
Neutral
|
0-6
|
|
GNAC Record
|
11-5
|
|
Non-Conference
|
0-8
|
|
3-Set Matches
|
5-6
|
|
4-Set Matches
|
3-4
|
|
5-Set Matches
|
3-3
|
|
Ranked Opponents
|
2-7
|
|
Winning First Set
|
7-5
|
|
Dropping First Set
|
4-8
|
|
Record by Jersey
|
|
White
|
5-4
|
|
Light Blue
|
0-3
|
|
Dark Gray
|
0-2
|
|
Navy Blue
|
6-4
|
Here is a match-by-match look at the 2023 season with current results and the schedule:
|
Date
|
Opponent
|
|
Score
|
Score-by-set
|
|
Yotes Classic Showcase (San Bernardino, CA)
|
|
8/31
|
Regis (#18)
|
L
|
3-1
|
22-25,25-20,15-25,20-25
|
|
8/31
|
Cal State San Bernardino (#19)
|
L
|
3-0
|
22-25,11-25,17-25
|
|
9/1
|
Cal State LA (#9)
|
L
|
3-0
|
17-25,15-25,18-25
|
|
9/2
|
MSU Denver (#3)
|
L
|
3-0
|
19-25,11-25,15-25
|
|
Colorado Premier Challenge (Denver, CO)
|
|
9/8
|
Ferris State (RV)
|
L
|
3-0
|
13-25,22-25,11-25
|
|
9/8
|
Concordia St. Paul (#2)
|
L
|
3-1
|
25-16,15-25,20-25,23-25
|
|
9/9
|
MSU Denver (#6)
|
L
|
3-0
|
20-25,14-25,13-25
|
|
9/9
|
Texas-Tyler (RV)
|
L
|
3-1
|
26-24,17-25,23-25,26-28
|
|
Great Northwest Athletic Conference
|
|
9/14
|
@Central Washington (#13) (GNAC)
|
L
|
3-1
|
15-25,15-25,25-22,23-25
|
|
9/16
|
@Northwest Nazarene (GNAC)
|
W
|
3-2
|
18-25,19-25,25-21,25-16,15-12
|
|
9/21
|
Alaska Anchorage (RV) (GNAC)
|
W
|
3-1
|
18-25,25-23,25-20,27-25
|
|
9/23
|
Alaska Fairbanks (GNAC)
|
W
|
3-2
|
25-11,16-25,25-19,18-25,15-11
|
|
9/30
|
@Simon Fraser (RV) (GNAC)
|
W
|
3-0
|
25-22,25-22,25-22
|
|
10/5
|
@Seattle Pacific (#21) (GNAC)
|
W
|
3-0
|
25-22,25-20,25-22
|
|
10/7
|
@MSU Billings (GNAC)
|
L
|
3-2
|
25-16,24-26,21-25,25-22,13-15
|
|
10/12
|
Saint Martin's (GNAC)
|
L
|
3-2
|
25-22,25-23,22-25,18-25,10-15
|
|
10/14
|
Western Oregon (GNAC)
|
W
|
3-1
|
25-22,12-25,25-17,25-20
|
|
10/19
|
@Alaska Fairbanks (GNAC)
|
L
|
3-0
|
13-25,20-25,15-25
|
|
10/21
|
@Alaska Anchorage (GNAC)
|
W
|
3-0
|
26-24,25-23,25-16
|
|
10/28
|
Simon Fraser (GNAC)
|
L
|
3-2
|
25-22,18-25,25-16,18-25,6-15
|
|
11/2
|
MSU Billings (GNAC)
|
W
|
3-0
|
25-15,25-15,25-16
|
|
11/4
|
Seattle Pacific (#18) (GNAC)
|
W
|
3-1
|
21-25,25-19,25-23,25-19
|
|
11/9
|
@Western Oregon (GNAC)
|
W
|
3-0
|
25-21,25-22,25-18
|
|
11/11
|
@Saint Martin's (GNAC)
|
W
|
3-2
|
20-25,25-22,25-23,23-25,15-12
|
|
11/16
|
Northwest Nazarene (GNAC)
|
|
|
7:00 pm – Carver Gym
|
|
11/18
|
Central Washington (GNAC)
|
|
|
7:00 pm – Carver Gym
|
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.
