Nov. 29, 2007

Box Score

BELLINGHAM, Wash. - Middle blockers Angie Alvord (Jr., Laurel/Meridian) and Tiana Roma (Jr., Edmonds/Edmonds-Woodway) combined for 26 kills with just two errors and 10 blocks as Western Washington University swept to a convincing victory over Dowling College, N.Y., 30-17, 30-28, 30-19, in a quarterfinal match at the NCAA Division II Elite Eight on Thursday at Lee Arena on the campus of Washburn University.

The Vikings, ranked No.15 in the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association/NCAA Division II Top 25, improved to 25-4 with their 20th straight victory, matching the second-longest streak in school history. They have lost just six games during that stretch, sweeping 15 matches.

Western advances to Friday's semifinals against host and No.4-ranked Washburn (38-3) at 4:30 p.m. PST. The Lady Blues upset No.1-rated and defending national champion University of Tampa (31-3), 3 games to 2, in a quarterfinal match after losing the first two games in front of a school-record crowd of 2,231.

The national title match will be Saturday at 5 p.m. PST. All of the Elite Eight matches are being video streamed live on CSTV.

Dowling, which had a 37-match winning streak snapped, ended its season at 39-8. The Golden Lions, who were making their third straight Elite Eight appearance, were led by All-America outside hitter Justyna Michon with 16 kills.

Western, making its first Elite Eight appearance, had a .359 attack percentage to .187 for Dowling. The Vikings also had a huge 10-1 edge in blocks.

"Before the match, you could tell that we were nervous, but I don't think we played as nervous as I thought we were," said Western coach Diane Flick (8th year, 174-46). "Our composure was really good, especially considering the venue and the event. They played with patience and calm."

The Vikings' hitting percentage was their third-highest this season.

"I always think a key stat is hitting percentage, and to hit .359 as a team is incredible," Flick said. "It's one of the higher ones we've had on the year and to do it at the Elite Eight under that kind of pressure is even more unbelievable."

Alvord had a season-high .625 attack percentage, tying for match-high honors with 16 kills in 24 attempts with just one error and five blocks. Roma had 10 kills in 19 attempts with just one error for a .474 attack percentage and five blocks.

Western outside hitter Jaime Anderson (Sr., SeaTac/Mount Rainier) added 13 kills and four blocks and setter Katie Robinson (Sr., Everson/Nooksack Valley) had 47 assists, two service aces and three blocks. Outside hitter Emily Castro (Sr., Bellingham/Meridian) had nine kills and 11 digs and Allison Gotz (Fr., Bothell/Archbishop Murphy) contributed 11 digs.

The Vikings' All-America libero Courtney Schneider (Sr., Snohomish) collected a match-high 21 digs, becoming just the third player in NCAA II history to reach the 2,600 plateau. Her four-year total now stands at 2,615.

In game one, the Vikings scored 10 straight points, the last nine on Schneider's serve, to take an 18-5 lead, and Dowling never got closer than 12 after that.

"We could have come out nervous and tentative, but instead we channeled that nervous energy into some strong play," Flick said.

Dowling led for large portions of game two, holding a 27-24 advantage before Western scored six of the last seven points.

"We let off the gas pedal a little bit," said Flick. "But at the end we made a push, and that's what this team is all about. There is no game out of our reach. We just keep believing."

The Vikings scored seven consecutive points to take a 13-5 lead in game three and another stretch of five straight gave them a 20-9 advantage as they closed out the match.

"We took some of the steam out of them because we gave them such a good shot in game two and they weren't able to get the win," Flick said. "A lot of times that can be deflating to a team, and we played with more patience knowing that we got challenged and were able to come back."

Western outside hitter Marissa Hill (Jr., North Bend/Mount Si) suffered a knee injury at the end of game one.

"Right now she has odd symptoms, so we're not quite sure (of her status)," said Flick. "If she gets cleared, we'll try her out with some jumps and we'll see how it goes after that."

The Vikings won the Pacific Regional title by sweeping No.3-ranked Cal State San Bernardino in the final. They took the Great Northwest Athletic Conference championship with a 17-1 record.

Washburn, which won the South Central Region championship, is led by two two-time AVCA All-Americans, 6-1 senior right-side hitter Tessa Jones, first-team choice, and 5-11 junior outside hitter Monica Miesner, a second-team pick. The Lady Blues are 17-0 at home this season.

"It's certainly going to be to their advantage to have that hometown crowd around them," Flick said. "That support system helped them get through the rough times of the first two games (against Tampa)."

"They've got some great hitters, who can hit the ball extremely hard, and they defend the ball well, so it's going to be a dogfight tomorrow."

Western and Washburn have never met previously.