UAA Athletics

With a win and a loss to the Nanooks, UAA’s home volleyball season is over

The UAA volleyball team opened their home season with a victory on Friday night and closed it with a loss on Saturday afternoon.

Hours after the Seawolves swept the UAF volleyball team, the Nanooks struck back to claim their first win in Anchorage since September 2010. The matches were the lone home games during UAA’s 16-match spring season.

Fairbanks took a five-set victory 23-25, 25-23, 25-19, 5-25, 15-13, to send UAA to its first loss this season. It was the 13th time since 1980 the Nanooks have won a match against the Seawolves in Anchorage.

The series dates back to 1980. The Seawolves lead it 73-37 and are 42-13 in Anchorage.

On Friday, UAA won 25-10, 25-17, 25-21 to run its record to 4-0.

The matches were contested at the Seawolf Sports Complex, a place the Seawolves hadn’t played since 2013. Their regular home at the Alaska Airlines Center is being used as a COVID-19 health facility.

The Seawolves got 17 kills from junior Eve Stephens and 14 from freshman Nicole Blue, but the Nanooks improved to 4-3 behind 16 kills from Lahra Weber and 11 from AveRee Reynolds.

ADVERTISEMENT

“We did not play with the same consistency or intensity that we brought to the court last night,” UAA coach Chris Green said in a release from the school. “UAF is a good team, and they executed much better today. We’ll look forward to a couple solid weeks of practice and keep improving.”

UAA hit .252 to UAF’s .075 but couldn’t survive a close fifth set. With the final set tied 13-13, the Nanooks won it with a kill by Reynolds and a match-point ace by Zoey Keene.

Blue added six digs and four block assists for the Seawolves, Vera Pluharova had six kills and a career-best 11 total blocks, sophomore Hannah Pembroke had nine kills and junior Talia Leauanae had a team-high 14 digs. Junior setter Ellen Floyd turned in her usual well-rounded game with 37 assists, nine digs, five kills, four total blocks and three aces.

UAA’s season continues April 10-11 in Ellensburg, Washington, with doubleheaders against Western Oregon and Central Washington.

ADVERTISEMENT