BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The Western Washington University volleyball team closed out its season-opening tournament with a 3-0 loss to San Francisco State to cap the 2024 WWU Invitational.
The Vikings fell to the Gators by set scores of 25-15, 25-18, 25-21 on WECU Court in Carver Gym to fall to 1-2 on the season.
Sophomore outside hitter Delaney Speer led the Vikings with a near double-double performance with 12 kills and nine digs for a team-high 12.5 points. Sophomore setter Caroline Hansen had 16 assists and seven digs and redshirt freshman setter Ayla Grant made her collegiate debut with a strong 10-assist performance. Sophomore libero Finnley Claeys led WWU with 12 digs.
SFSU (1-2) was led by a 15-kill, 11-dig double-double by Tamiya Wilson and 39 assists from Kimberly DeBoer. The Gators combined to hit .333 in the match, while limiting the Vikings to a .114 hitting percentage.
Gallery: (9-7-2024) VB | WWU vs. SFSU
The Vikings (1-2) close out the non-conference portion of their early-season schedule next weekend with three matches in the CWU Invitational inside Nicholson Pavilion in Ellensburg, WWU is scheduled to face three nationally-ranked opponents matching up against No. 8 Cal State San Bernardino (Thursday, 2 pm), No. 1 Cal State LA (Friday, 2 pm) and No. 21 Cal Poly Pomona (Saturday, 11 am). Fans can follow all the road matches with direct links online at wwuvikings.com/Live.
Here is a look at the schedule and results for the 2024 WWU Volleyball Invitational:
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Thursday, September 5:
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#7 MSU Denver 3, #22 Central Washington 0 (25-21, 25-22, 25-21)
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Western Washington 3, Sonoma State 0 (28-26, 25-18, 25-22)
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Friday, September 6:
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#7 MSU Denver 3, Sonoma State 0 (25-20, 25-20, 25-21)
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#22 Central Washington 3, San Francisco State 2 (20-25, 25-19, 25-20, 29-31, 15-13)
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#7 MSU Denver 3, Western Washington 0 (25-14, 25-22, 25-20)
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Saturday, September 7:
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#7 MSU Denver 3, San Francisco State 0 (25-19, 25-16, 25-16)
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Sonoma State 3, #22 Central Washington 1 (28-26, 20-25, 25-19, 25-16)
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San Francisco State 3, Western Washington 0 (25-15, 25-18, 25-21)
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Kills – Speer (12), Tri (6), Grant (4)
Aces – Holland (1), VanderYacht (1), Vossenkuhl (1)
Blocks – Vossenkuhl (3), May (1), Grant (1)
Assists – Hansen (16), Grant (10), Holland (5)
Digs – Claeys (12), Speer (9), Hansen (7)
Points – Speer (12.5), Tri (7.0), Vossenkuhl (6.5)
Here is a look at the statistical comparison between WWU and San Francisco State:
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COMPARISON
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WWU
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SFSU
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Attack Pct.
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.114 (34-21-114)
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.333 (46-11-105)
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Kills
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34
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46
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Assists
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33
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43
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Service Aces
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3
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4
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Solo Blocks
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2
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0
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Block Assists
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6
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12
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Total Blocks
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5.0
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6.0
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Tie Scores: 4 Lead Changes: 2
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Here is a look at Western's record breakdown for the 2024 season:
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2024 RECORD BREAKDOWN
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Overall Record
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1-2
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Streak
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L2
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Home
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1-2
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Away
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0-0
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Neutral
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0-0
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GNAC Record
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0-0
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Non-Conference
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1-2
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3-Set Matches
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1-2
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4-Set Matches
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0-0
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5-Set Matches
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0-0
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Ranked Opponents
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0-1
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Winning First Set
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1-0
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Dropping First Set
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0-2
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Record by Jersey
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White
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0-0
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Light Blue
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0-1
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Dark Gray
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0-0
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Navy Blue
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1-1
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Fans can follow WWU Volleyball online at WWUVikings.com/VB, and via social media on 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 is in its 54th season as a varsity intercollegiate sport in 2024, rising to an elite level by advancing to the NCAA Division II Championships in 10 of the last 11 seasons and 16 of the last 22 dating back to the 2001 season. The program has recorded 1,025 all-time wins (1025-594-7). The winner of 11 Great Northwest Athletic Conference, the Vikings have four of the last seven GNAC titles with a perfect 19-1 record in 2017, perfect 20-0 mark in 2018, an 18-2 league record in 2019 and clinched the four-peat with a 17-1 record in 2021. Led by 25th-year head coach Diane Flick-Williams (519-139) the Vikings have posted a 270-69 record over the last 13 seasons and played in the NCAA II West Region championship match five out of the last eight seasons, winning titles in 2015, 2018 and 2021 (also 2007). 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 three of the past eight seasons (2015, 2018, 2021).
