Nov. 5, 2005

LMU - 3
Saint Mary's - 1

Los Angeles, Calif. - Emily Day tallied 25 kills and 24 digs to lead Loyola Marymount (18-7, 6-5 WCC) to the 3-1 (30-26. 39-37, 31-29, 40-38) thriller over Saint Mary's (15-7, 6-4 WCC) in West Coast Conference volleyball action Saturday night in Gersten Pavilion. Both stats are new career-highs for the freshman, who has now registered double-digit kills in 11 of her last 12 matches.

The Lions have now won six of their last seven matches and finish the weekend a perfect 2-0 in WCC play. The Lions have three WCC scheduled contests remaining, with Pepperdine at home and Gonzaga and Portland on the road. LMU will return for one final non-conference contest with UC Santa Barbara on November 22.

LMU tallied 98 digs, out-digging the Gaels by 23. But Saint Mary's had an impressive night at the net, posting 26 team blocks. LMU won the four-game contest hitting just .170 as a team.

Five Lions registered double-digit kills led by Heather Hughes' fifth triple-double of the season with 10 kills, 44 assists, and 13 digs. Christianna Reneau (19 kills, 23 assists) recorded a double-double and earned a spot in the LMU record book after tallying 356 digs so far this season. She now ranks 10th on the all-time season leaders' list.

LMU out-dug Saint Mary's 17 to 10 and used six kills from Day to win game one 30-26. The Lions led by four twice, but two late-game service errors brought the Gaels back within two at 26-24. Saint Mary's took a timeout when Reneau's kill made it 27-24, but senior Krista Houseman prevented any SMC run with a solo block to end the game. ? Game two turned into an epic thriller, with the score tied 20 times. It took a score of 39-37 for Saint Mary's to pull ahead by two points. LMU had 11 game point opportunities, holding a 29-24 lead thanks to a six point streak behind the serving of Hughes. But the Gaels then turned hot themselves thanks to the serving of Missie Stidham, who led SMC to five straight points to tie the game at 29. From there, LMU regained the momentum, earning game points on kills and blocks by Dina DeBernardi, Day, and Houseman. But then the Gaels earned three game point changes before tying the match at 1-1 with the 39-37 game two win.

LMU hit just .091 in game three, but six more kills from Day to come-from-behind for the 31-29 win. Saint Mary's led by four three times, and LMU called a timeout when the Gaels earned game point at 29-28. The Lions returned to the court to win three straight points to take a 2-1 lead in the match.

Trailing by as many as six points in the fourth game, the Lions took a timeout when Saint Mary's took a three point advantage at 21-18. The Gaels went on to earn game point at 29-24, but like in game two, game point triggered a rally. Led by kills by Sandy Krone, Hughes, Day, and Erin Downey, LMU won the next five points to tie the game at 29. Saint Mary's had eight game point opportunities before LMU became the first to win two straight points down the stretch for the 40-38 win.

Stidham led the Gaels with 19 kills, 19 digs, eight blocks, and two service aces. Christina Kirk led all players with 13 blocks.

LMU remains at home for WCC play next weekend, hosting cross-town rival Pepperdine Friday at 7:00 p.m. Fans can follow all of the action on Gametracker and Lions' All-Access, both at www.LMULions.com.

Pepperdine - 3
San Francisco - 0

MALIBU, Calif. - A night after putting up a 20-kill, 20-dig effort, Pepperdine senior Katy Daly turned in a 15-kill, 14-dig effort to help lift the Waves over the San Francisco Dons, 3-0 (30-12, 30-21, 30-27), Saturday night in West Coast Conference (WCC) play in Malibu, Calif.

Fresh off the emotion of Senior Night festivities, Daly exploded for eight kills and hit .700 in the opening frame as Pepperdine (14-10, 7-4 WCC) hit .533 in game one with 18 kills and just two errors. The Waves got out to an 8-2 lead on the Dons (15-11, 2-8 WCC) and continued to run away with the game before sealing the game on a USF attack error.

San Francisco had the hot hand early in game two after a 4-0 run gave the Dons a 5-2 lead. The lead would reach six at 13-7 when a kill from Daly ignited a 7-0 run. Six of the points came with Daly at the service line. The game would be knotted at 17-17 after Lecca Roberts was called for a lift. But USF would commit an attack error, get blocked by Roberts and Melissa Mehlhorn and had Roberts record a kill as Pepperdine took control of the game. The Waves sealed the deal with an 8-1 run to take a 2-0 lead into the lockerroom.

Daly's 15 kills lead all players, while Sophia Milo chipped in with 11 kills on .417 hitting as the only two players to reach double-digits in kill in the match. Mehlhorn recorded a double-double with 39 assists and 10 digs, while Daly added 14-digs to complete her sixth double-double of the season.

USF was led by Linzy Kearney's nine kills, but the team was limited to just. 067 hitting. The Dons managed to outblock the Waves by a 9.5-7.0 margin.

Game three was tightly contested the entire way, but Pepperdine was able to maintain control of the game. A 5-0 Dons' run gave USF a 20-17 lead, but the Waves would not be denied and answered with a 7-0 run off the serve of Kristin McClune. San Francisco would pull within one, 24-23, but Pepperdine built and maintained a two to three point lead as the teams traded sideouts.

Pepperdine's final home game of the season will be on Tuesday when the Waves host UCLA at Firestone Fieldhouse. First serve is slated for 7 p.m. (PDT).

San Diego - 3
Portland - 0

Portland, OR- For the second straight night, the University of Portland's volleyball team was swept 3-0 by a nationally ranked team at the Chiles Center. No. 22 San Diego did the damage on Saturday night, winning by scores of 31-29, 30-18, and 30-23 during the match.

The Pilots started out the match just as they ended the Santa Clara match on Friday night, outhitting the Toreros .289 to .250 and holding several leads late. But the Pilots couldn't hang on to the lead late, as San Diego received kills from Erin Wiskar and Christie Dawson to win the game after the score was knotted at 29.

Unfortunately for the Pilots, Game 2 and Game 3 weren't as evenly matched. Even without the services of star outside hitter Kristen Carlson, San Diego hit for a torrid .483 hitting percentage in Game 2 and an equally impressive .471 in Game 3. Dawson and Jeanne Fairchild led the Toreros offensively, with each recording 14 kills.

"I feel like we didn't have an answer for Dawson tonight," Portland head coach Doug Sparks said after the game. "Our game plan centered around her and she still did her thing."

Portland's Murphy McClenahan and San Diego's Jackie Bernardin each recorded a match-high 15 digs, while four separate Toreros each had four total blocks. Dawson recorded the match's only double-double, adding 10 digs to her 14 kills.

For the second straight match, Kelly Whitehouse provided an offensive spark off the bench. Just as she did against Santa Clara on Friday night, Whitehouse came in late in Game 2 and immediately recorded two quick kills. She added five more kills in Game 3 to end the match with seven.

The Pilots head to California for the final time next weekend, where they will take on San Francisco on Friday and Saint Mary's on Saturday.

MATCH NOTES: Sara Vercruyssen recorded double-figures in kills for the third straight match ... Vercruyssen had her 1200th career kill against San Diego ... Jennifer Sheedy hit .500 (9k-2e-14ta) tonight, the third time this season she has eclipsed the .500 mark ... Game 1 featured 15 tie scores and eight lead changes ... Kelly Whitehouse has now had at least seven kills in her last three matches.

Santa Clara - 3
Gonzaga - 2

SPOKANE, Wash. - In a thrilling come-from-behind victory, the No. 11 Santa Clara women's volleyball team snatched a five-game victory from Gonzaga tonight up in Spokane, Wash. With the win, coupled with Saint Mary's loss to Loyola Marymount earlier tonight, Santa Clara (22-1, 11-0 WCC) clinched its first West Coast Conference Championship since 2000. Game scores were 28-30, 26-30, 30-22, 30-26, and 15-10. In addition to winning the WCC crown, SCU has set another school record with its 15th consecutive victory, breaking the old record of 14 straight wins that was set during the 1993 season.

"We're excited to win conference," stated head coach Jon Wallace about his second WCC title in his seven-year career on the Mission Campus. "In a team meeting last January, we set it as a goal to win the WCC. I told the girls that I only wanted people who were willing to work hard and make the sacrifices in order to achieve our goals. It was the hardest spring we've ever had and now, it's paying off for us."

Leading the way for Santa Clara was junior outside hitter Kim McGiven, who finished with a match-high 23 kills on a .304 hitting percentage. Senior opposite Cassie Perret and freshman outside hitter Brittany Lowe combined for 33 kills, while sophomore middle blocker Annalisa Muratore chipped in 14 kills in the winning cause. On the defensive end, junior middle blocker Megan Pura notched six blocks and sophomore libero Caroline Walters had a match-high 21 digs. Walters' effect on the match extended beyond to just her excellent back-row play - her leadership abilities were evident tonight and a huge reason why the Broncos were able to triumph on the last leg of their Pacific Northwest swing.

"Caroline Walters' strong desire to win kept us in the match and she was the glue that really kept the team together," said Wallace. "She was vocal out on the court and really made sure our hitters stayed aggressive out there."

In games one and two, the Broncos were unable to generate much offense, as they hit .205 and .171, respectively, which enabled the Bulldogs to take a 2-0 lead heading into the locker room. Tough serving and excellent front-row defense by Gonzaga stymied Santa Clara and put the visitors in a position they had yet to face this season.

The third frame was a complete turnaround from the previous two, as Santa Clara's offense picked up steam, with the team hitting at a .381 clip. Behind early kills by McGiven and Perret, SCU built a 13-6 lead that it would never relinquish. SCU held a comfortable advantage over the Bulldogs for much of game three and a McGiven kill finished off the frame, closing the gap to two games to one.

After trading points back-and-forth in the opening stages of game four, Santa Clara managed to pull away on a 4-0 run to make it 11-7. Two kills by Lowe and a laser by Perret accounted for much of the offense during that key string of points. Gonzaga was not deterred and evened up the score at 16-16 after McGiven was blocked on an attack attempt. McGiven would more than make up for her error, however, as two kills by the outside hitter powered SCU to a 25-21 advantage and the Broncos never looked back. The match was tied up at two games apiece after a Megan Pura kill ended game four.

In the decisive fifth game, Santa Clara took a slim lead in the early going and continued to apply pressure on both ends of the court. Kills by McGiven and Muratore at crucial junctures of the game denied the Bulldogs any hopes of overtaking the Broncos. A kill by Perret ended the two-hour, two-minute marathon.

"We faced adversity tonight and give credit to Gonzaga - they came ready to play. We were down two games to nothing, and the girls said they wanted to win. That was the difference - we wanted to win more than they did," said Wallace. "Gonzaga still played really well in games three, four, and five, but we made the hustle plays and pulled out the victory."

With the conference crown all wrapped up and three remaining WCC contests remaining, the Broncos will attempt to pull off a perfect league record in the remaining two weeks. Next Friday, Santa Clara travels down to Southern California to face No. 22 San Diego. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m.

WCCSports.com Women's Volleyball

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