VOLLEYBALL: Bartlett, East grads play key roles in tourney victory.
For the first time in three years, the UAA volleyball team started the season with a victory -- doing so with authority -- but serving errors and other mistakes kept the Seawolves from winning two in a row Friday.
As a result, they must win this morning's match against the University of Mary if they want a chance to defend their title in the Extended Stay Deluxe Invitational at the Wells Fargo Sports Complex.
Both teams are 1-1 in the four-team tournament. The winner will play Academy of Art in the championship match and the loser will face Kentucky Wesleyan in the third-place match.
The Seawolves led from start to finish in a 25-14, 25-13, 25-11 sweep of Kentucky Wesleyan in the opening match of the tournament.
When they returned to the court several hours later, they had their chances but made too many errors in a 28-26, 17-25, 25-23, 18-25, 15-10 loss to Academy of Art, the only team to emerge undefeated Friday.
"We had a lot of errors, a lot of opening-tournament errors, and too many serving errors," UAA coach Chris Green said of the loss. "We had our opportunities. We just made errors at the wrong time."
The first match turned into a showcase for a couple of local players.
Sophomore McKenzie Moss, a Bartlett High graduate who saw limited action last season, pounded a match-high 14 kills, and sophomore Jackie Matthisen, an East High graduate who transferred from Western Oregon, made her hometown debut with four kills and five digs.
Moss was particularly impressive. She had 14 kills and three hitting errors on 24 attacks for a solid .458 hitting percentage. She also had a hand in four blocks.
The win also featured strong play from some of UAA's top returners. Calli Scott, the Newcomer of the Year in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference last season, had 27 assists; libero Stacie Meisner had eight digs, and junior Cortney Lundberg had three blocks and four kills.
Moss and Matthisen also spearheaded the UAA offense in the match against Academy of Art. Moss had 14 kills, 13 digs and two aceds and Matthisen tallied 15 kills, eight digs and four blocks.
Scott delivered 44 assists and Marie Borowikow, a freshman from Germany, notched five blocks and 12 kills.
In Friday's other matches, the University of Mary of Bismarck, N.D., won one match and lost one match.
The Marauders beat Kentucky Wesleyan 25-22, 25-14, 25-15 with a defensive effort that saw the team from North Dakota notch eight blocks to Wesleyan's three and claim a 46-34 dig advantage over the Panthers. Amanda Hennessy sparked the Marauders with six kills and seven digs.
Earlier, the Academy of Art rallied to hand the Marauders a 20-25, 25-16, 25-23, 25-12 setback. Outside hitter Dan Yang came through with 16 kills and 11 digs, Jelena Jakovljevic chipped in 14 kills and setter Melissa Cheng contributed 36 assists, 16 digs and six kills on just 10 attacks for the winners, who are from San Francisco.
Extended Stay Deluxe Invtiational
Wells Fargo Sports Complex
Today's matches
11 a.m. -- UAA vs. University of Mary (1-1)
1 p.m. -- Academy of Art vs. Kentucky Wesleyan (0-2)
5 p.m. -- 3rd-place match
7 p.m. -- Championship
Friday's results
UAA vs. Academy of Art, late
UAA def. Kentucky Wesleyan 25-14, 25-13, 25-11
Academy of Art def. Mary 20-25, 25-16, 25-23, 25-12
Mary def. Kentucky Wesleyan 25-22, 25-14, 25-15
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