STOCKTON, Calif. – Despite 20 kills from senior
Alexa Edwards, Washington State was able to escape Pacific with a 3-1 (20-25, 25-21, 25-20, 25-22) decision Thursday at the Alex G. Spanos Center.
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The Tigers (11-6, 1-4 WCC) got off to a hot start and took the first set decisively. Though, Washington State (9-5, 4-1 WCC) bounced back by taking sets two and three and jumped out to an 11-3 edge in the fourth before Pacific made one last push. The Tigers came all the way back to even the fourth 22-22 before the Cougars were able to close out the final three points.
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Edwards, who entered the match leading the West Coast Conference in kills per set with 4.22, was above her average with 5.0 kills per set Thursday. She notched her 11th double-double of the season after scooping up 10 digs. Edwards is up to 1,671 career kills which ranks third all-time in school history.
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Also posting her 11th double-double of the year was senior
Jenna Heller with 35 assists and 10 digs. Edwards and Heller were two of four Tigers to reach double-figures in digs along with junior
Jayhlin Swain with 24 and graduate
Darina Kumanova with 12.
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The Tigers raced out to a 6-2 lead in the first after a kill by Edwards. The Cougars cut it to 14-13 midway through, but Pacific remained on top 19-17 after an attack by junior
Emily Van Groningen. The Tigers were in front 22-20 when they won the last three points of the frame, which included a kill and block by graduate
Margherita Giani.
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The second was tied 9-9 when the Cougars took four straight go lead 13-9. Washington State extended it to 20-14 when the Tigers went on a run late in the frame and trimmed it to 23-21 after a kill by Edwards. The Cougars grabbed the final two points of the set however.
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The third went a similar way as the Tigers fell behind 10-4 and were fighting to get back in it. Pacific cut it to 15-14 on Heller's serve was still only down 20-18 after a kill by Van Groningen. Though, Washington State was able to pull away late in the frame.
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Pacific trailed 11-3 in the fourth when it slowly chipped away at the deficit. A kill by Kumanova made it 13-7, and a dump by Heller cut it to 16-13. An ace by Edwards got the Tigers within two at 20-18, and an error by the Cougars evened it 22-22.
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Pacific is now 4-1 all-time against Washington State.
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The Tigers will remain at the Alex G. Spanos Center on Saturday when they host Gonzaga at 12 p.m. over Homecoming Weekend. The match can also be watched live on ESPN+ with Jeff
Dominick on the call.
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