Sept. 17, 2009
Box Score
Stockton, Calif. - Opening the 2009 Hilton Stockton Invitational, the Pacific women's volleyball team picked up a convincing 3-0 sweep of Cal State Bakersfield on Thursday, September 17. With the win the Tigers moved to 8-1 on the year while the Roadrunners fell to 7-6 overall.
Set scores for the match were: 25-16, 25-21, 25-20
Doing what they have done best all season long, the Tigers got out front early and never looked back against the Roadrunners to post their second sweep over Cal State Bakersfield in as many matches. Just as Pacific had done in their first matchup against Cal State Bakersfield, the Tigers used a big run in set one to pull away in the opening set, however, this time the Tigers did not wait for their backs to be against the wall.
Tied at 14-14 in set one, Pacific, led by sophomore Rebekah Torres (Wahiawa, Hawaii), rolled off eight straight points to take a commanding 22-14 lead and secure the first set victory. After senior Natalia Tomaszewska (Marklowice, Poland) put down a her second kill of the set to break the tie, Torres served eight consecutive points, posting one ace in the run while forcing the Roadrunners on the defensive despite receiving serve. With the set in hand, Pacific put a cap on the opener at the net with senior Mallori Gibson (Bakersfield, Calif.) and freshman Andrea Terpstra (Ripon, Calif.) combining to block the Roadrunners' attempt at a comeback. The block was Terpstra's second of her young career.
After taking the first set Pacific focused its sights on set two, falling behind early before rallying late to capture the two sets to none lead. Tied at 18-18, the Tigers looked to the senior middle blocker for a lift as Tomaszewska delivered both at the net and behind the service line. Again, it was Tomaszewska who broke the tie with a kill before heading back to serve herself to push Pacific to the win. Tomaszewska served four straight points for the Tigers as Pacific built a small cushion at 21-19. With the set still in doubt, Pacific closed out the set on a 4-2 run, picking up three points from the serve alone with junior Svenja Engelhardt (Sinsheim, Germany) tallying first and only ace of the match to go along with a pair of Roadrunner service errors.
With the sweep well within their grasp, the Tigers put away the Roadrunners in the third and final set of the night, overcoming a rash of service errors, seven in the middle of the set, with a balanced attack at the net. As well as overcoming their serving woes, the Tigers again mounted a late rally against Cal State Bakersfield, overcoming a 19-16 deficit with a 9-1 run to close out the set and the match. Gibson and Torres put the Tigers in position for success from the service line with Gibson serving five straight points and Torres closing the match out with three consecutive serves.
In the set Gibson led the way with six kills on 12 swings and just one error while Torres posted four kills on 12 swings and two errors. For Tomaszewska, the senior closed out her night with three kills on five swings and no errors. The error free set was no stranger for Tomaszewska as she posted a nearly perfect night at the net with nine kills on 12 swings and no errors for a .750 hitting percentage. Gibson finished the night with a match-high 13 kills and just two errors on 27 swings while Engelhardt posted 10 kills and two errors on 19 attacks. Senior setter Olivia Riley (Agua Dulce, Calif.) tallied her first double-double of the season as she put up 32 assists to go along with 12 digs defensively. Additionally, Riley's sets led to the Tigers posting a season-best .378 hitting percentage (40 kills, 10 errors, 90 attacks).
For the Roadrunners, Lindy DeGeare posted 11 kills and just four errors on 21 swings as the only Cal State Bakersfield attacker to reach double figures in kills. As a team, the Roadrunners posted a .163 hitting percentage as they tallied 27 kills and 12 errors on 92 attempts.
The 2009 Hilton Stockton Invitational will continue on Friday, September 18 with three games the first of which features Nevada against Loyola Marymount at 11:00 am. Pacific will be back in action during the night cap of the day at 7:00 pm as the Tigers host Nevada.
