PHOENIX, Ariz. - In back-to-back nights, the Pacific volleyball team captured a three-set sweep, this time blanking Portland State 27-25, 25-16, 25-17 at the Global Credit Arena to start the GCU Classic 2-0. 
 
Graduate outside hitter Alexa Edwards was all over the floor for Pacific (6-2), capturing 20 kills to lead both teams on the evening. She sharpened the Tigers iron clad defenses with three blocks and eight digs. Edwards ended the match hitting .366, which led all Tigers with 20 or greater attacks.
 
Senior setter Jenna Heller was a key driving force behind Pacific's offense, racking up 38 assists. Portland State as a team grabbed 29 assists on the night. Heller came up big with three blocks and two kills, including the second set winning kill to put the Tigers up 2-0 heading into the final set. 
 
Also tacking on 12 digs was junior libero Jayhlin Swain. The transfer brought her season total to 129 digs, now averaging 3.91 digs per set to rank third in the West Coast Conference. 
 
Junior middle blocker Emily Van Groningen was huge for the Tigers, adding seven kills on 14 attacks and one error. She hit .429 while grabbing three blocks. She was one of three Tigers with a solo block, picking it up during Pacific's 3-1 run to close the third set. Heller and Edwards were also accredited solo blocks. Senior middle block Abby Miller tied Van Groningen with seven kills, which ranked third on the team on the evening. 
 
Graduate middle blocker Margherita Giani led the team with four blocks, moving her to 23.0 total blocks on the season. She sits just behind Van Groningen, who now has 29.0 blocks.
 
Fellow graduate Darina Kumanova extended her match streak with one or more aces to five after grabbing the lone ace on the night for Pacific. She leads the Tigers with 12 aces on the season.
 
The Tigers paced the Vikings across the board, picking up 49 kills, nine blocks, 41 assists and 52 digs to Portland State's 32 kills, eight blocks, 29 assists and 36 digs. Pacific out hit the Vikings .288 to .167 with 49 kills and 17 errors on 111 total attacks. Pacific's 16.33 kills per set against Portland State was its highest average on the season thus far.
 
While errors plagued the Tigers through the opening set allowing the Vikings to push Pacific past 25, the Tigers grabbed 20 kills to Portland State's 12. Pacific cleaned up in the second set, lowering its errors to four while adding an additional 15 kills, hitting .333 on 33 attacks. The Tigers closed down the match with 14 kills in the third set, only allowing nine kills while holding the Vikings below a .200 hitting percentage in all three sets.
 
The Tigers close out the GCU Classic against host Grand Canyon as the two prepare to meet for the first time at 2 p.m. at Global Credit Arena. Live stats are available and the match can be streamed on ESPN+.
 
Stay Social
For all the latest on Pacific Volleyball, be sure to follow the team on X (@PacificVball), Instagram (@pacificvolleyball) and Facebook page (Pacific Volleyball).
 
#PacificProud