Seawolves edge Nighthawks in 5-set thriller

Nampa, Idaho (Nov. 9) - The Alaska Anchorage volleyball used huge efforts from pin hitters Katie Birtcil, Tia Allen and Larssen Anderson, including the match-point kill from Anderson in a 17-25, 25-17, 23-25, 25-12, 16-14 victory over Northwest Nazarene on Saturday at the Johnson Sports Center.

The Seawolves (14-11, 8-7 Great Northwest Athletic Conference) got season-high numbers of 15 kills, 23 digs and five total blocks from Birtcil as they clinched no worse than a .500 record with three matches remaining. Allen had 13 kills and a season-high 19 digs, while Anderson equaled her career high in kills, finding an opening in the back corner to end the match.

The Nighthawks (7-15, 4-10) were led by 18 kills from Abby Black, but were outhit .300 to .174 over the final two sets.

"It was a great team effort as we continue to work with some different personnel on the court," said Meisner, whose squad finishes with three matches at the Alaska Airlines Center. "It was a battle to the end, and it feels good to finish our last road trip with a win."

Aiming for a season sweep of the Nighthawks, the Seawolves shook off a rough first set thanks to Birtcil. The grad transfer from New Mexico State had six kills on .500 hitting the second frame, and finished the day with just one attack error on .318 hitting.

UAA played from behind for most of the third set, drawing within 24-23 on late kills by Allen and Anderson, but Miya Koch delivered a kill for the hosts on their second set-point chance.

After trailing briefly at 6-5 in the fourth, the Seawolves got two kills from sophomore Bella Burney during a 6-1 surge, and finished with another 10-1 run to send it the distance.

The fifth set remained close the whole way, with each team taking brief three-point leads. Consecutive kills by Allen and Leilani Elder put UAA up 10-7, but NNU would ruin two chances at match point, tying it 14-14 on a block of Birtcil. Meisner's final timeout came in handy, however, as the Seawolves got a kill down the middle from Burney to retake the lead, followed by a perfect feed from setter Kadyn Osborne to Anderson for the win.

Osborne finished with 28 assists, 15 digs and two kills on four attacks, while freshman setter Hannah Trotter dished 23 assists.

Burney had six kills and five block assists, Elder notched seven kills on .300 hitting, and freshman middle blocker Martina Riba had a career-high eight kills on .400 hitting.

The Seawolves return to the Alaska Airlines Center on Saturday, Nov. 16 to face arch-rival Alaska Fairbanks in the inaugural Alaska Volleyball Day celebration. Preceded by the ASAA 4A state title match, UAA will take the court at 7:30 pm as it aims to reclaim the NCAA Div. II regular-season attendance record, which currently stands at 4,003. All tickets are $5 (half price) and can be purchased in advance at GoSeawolves.com.