Western Washington University Athletics

BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The Western Washington University volleyball team opened GNAC play with a five-set victory over Northwest Nazarene University Thursday night while making its 2026 Carver Gym debut on WECU Court.

The Vikings outlasted the Nighthawks 23-25, 25-15, 25-19, 23-25, 15-8 to take the 3-2 victory improving to 4-3 on the season overall and 1-0 in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play. The back-and-forth match featured 17 tie scores and nine lead changes throughout the five-set marathon.

"That was a great battle with a tough NNU squad. I thought our team gritted it out with some good plays at the end to earn the win," said WWU head coach Diane Flick-Williams. "Delaney (Speer) was outstanding on all facets of the game, and Finnley (Claeys) was great on serve receive to help our offense stay in system. We are learning and growing with every outing and have a lot of takeaways from this one."

Senior pin hitter Delaney Speer delivered the top all-around performance with a 22-kill, 14-dig double-double on a .345 hitting percentage. The double-double was her fourth in seven matches this season.

WWU's offensive output featured five players with nine-or-more kills, with sophomore Aly Skagen (11 kills), freshman Jasmine Terry (11 kills), sophomore Maren Stuber (10 kills) and senior Emily Vossenkuhl (9 kills) all contributing big offensive efforts. 

Senior libero Finnley Claeys anchored the defense with 23 digs, followed by 16 from sophomore Chayse Flick-Williams. Freshman setter Maya Quitiquit (34 assists, 7 digs, 4 aces) and senior Caroline Hansen (23 assists, 6 digs) ran an efficient offense for a season-best .251 hitting percentage. Sophomore Brooke Berglund led the Vikings with five total blocks.

NNU (6-2, 0-1 GNAC) was led by 17 kills each by Abby Black (24 digs) and Maddy Hellem. 

The Vikings (4-3, 1-0 GNAC) returns to action Saturday hosting in-state rival Central Washington with first serve scheduled for 7 pm on WECU Court in Carver Gym. The complete 2026 season schedule is available at WWUVikings.com with season and single match tickets available at WWUVikings.com/Tickets.
 

Kills – Speer (22), Skagen (11), Terry (11), Stuber (10), Vossenkuhl (9)

Aces – Quitiquit (4), Claeys (1), Flick-Williams (1)

Blocks – Berglund (5), Vossenkuhl (3), Terry (3)

Assists – Quitiquit (34), Hansen (23)

Digs – Claeys (23), Flick-Williams (16), Speer (14)

Points – Speer (22.5), Terry (12.5), Skagen (12.0), Vossenkuhl (11.0), Stuber (10.0)

Here is a look at the statistical comparison between WWU and Northwest Nazarene:

Here is a look at Western's record breakdown for the 2026 season:

Here is a look at the updated GNAC Volleyball standings and results the opening day of action for the 2026 conference schedule. Updated conference standings, results, schedule and statistics can be found online at GNACSports.com.

Here is a match-by-match look at the 2026 season with current results and the schedule: