Mandy Rockwell keyed the offense with 15 kills while Wendy Wilford added 13 more. Freshman setter Heather Cushing handed out 35 assists. The Missionaries also got 13 digs from Rockwell and 10 from Wilford.
Playing in the Linfield Invitational in McMinnville, Oregon, Whitman and
Cascade College alternated wins through the first four games before
the Missionaries prevailed with a 16-14 victory in the deciding fifth
set.Heather Cushing sparked the offense with 63 assists along with four aces and five digs. Mandy Rockwell contributed 23 kills.
In the climactic fifth game, Whitman's Ashleigh Cross was the difference, nailing 11 kills in 13 attempts. She totaled 18 kills for the match.
Donna Hager had eight kills and three blocks to lead Whitman. Heather Cushing contributed 35 assists and three service aces. Mandy Rockwell chipped in with four kills, four aces and two blocks.
Mandy Rockwell led the team with 12 kills, three service aces and a whopping 37 digs. Paula Cleveland helped from the back row with 27 digs of her own and two service aces. Ashleigh Cross also had her deadly moments, collecting all seven of her kills in the third game.
Heather Cushing contributed three service aces and 32 assists.
Mandy Rockwell lead the Missionaries with five kills and five digs. Ashleigh Cross and Barby Ream added four kills apiece. Cross also had four digs, while Heather Cushing had 12 assists.
Proving they were just tired when the lost to Pacific University the weekend
before, the Missionaries gave host Pacific an unexpected
trouncing. Although Pacific rallied in the third game, Whitman took the
match in four, 15-6, 15-8, 11-15, 15-7.Mandy Rockwell, who had a solid match with nine kills, seven service aces and 15 digs, had plenty of support from Wendy Wilford and Barby Ream, who had eight kills apiece. Wilford also had 15 digs, while Ream collected seven digs and five blocks.
Others making key contributions were Heather
Cushing with 32 assists and eight digs, Ashleigh Cross with seven kills
and five digs, and Paula Cleveland with a dozen digs.
Playing its best volleyball of the season, Whitman outlasted Simon Fraser
University 15-12, 16-14, 16-14, in a non-conference match that lasted over
two hours on the host team's home turf in Burnaby, British Columbia."We played extremely well in the first game," Whitman coach Dean Snider said. "It was the easiest of the three games, if you can call any of them easy."
The Missionaries prevailed despite losing Ashleigh Cross to illness midway
through the first game. "Donna Hager came in and played the way she is
capable of playing," Snider said. "We needed to get kills all around the
rotation against Simon Fraser, and Donna helped us do that."
After Whitman took the first two games, Simon Fraser used strong
service games to bolt to an early 7-1 lead in the third game. "We were
able to chip our way back into the game," noted Snider, and the
Missionaries eventually pulled to within 14-12. Whitman then turned back
several Simon Fraser scoring opportunities before scoring the game's final
four points to clinch the victory.
Wendy Wilford wreaked havoc from a number of directions, collecting 18 kills along with 13 digs and four assists. Mandy Rockwell combined 12 kills with 11 digs, while Hager also finished with 12 kills.
Barby Ream with 10 kills and freshman Kelly Williams with nine put the
finishing touches on Whitman's well-rounded attack. Ream added eight digs
and four solo blocks. Heather Cushing accumulated 40 assists, and Paula
Cleveland had 11 digs.
Whitman completed its triumphant two-day sweep through British Columbia
with a five-game victory over Douglas College, a two-year community
college with 10,000 students on three separate campuses in the Vancouver
area. Because Douglas is a two-year school, the match does not count as
part of Whitman's season won-loss record.The Missionaries started slowly, dropping the first game before winning three of the next four games.
Barby Ream led Whitman with 13 kills, six digs and one solo block. Wendy Wilford had 12 kills and six digs, while Mandy Rockwell totaled 11 kills and eight digs. Heather Cushing had 34 assists.
With freshman Jeni Brown providing a mid-match burst of energy, Whitman
overcame illness and injury to rally past host Whitworth in fives
games. It was Whitman's fourth straight victory."It was a good win for us," Missionary coach Dean Snider said. "Whitworth is a tough place to play, and it's easy to make excuses for yourself. Our players didn't do that."
The Missionaries played without senior Donna Hager, who was sidelined with tendonitis in both Achilles tendons, and lost starter Ashleigh Cross to the effects of a cold or the flu after a few games.
Whitman struggled to a 17-15 victory in the first game before Whitworth rebounded to take the next two games. "At that point we had to pull Ashleigh from the match," Snider said. "She had no energy left and almost felt as if she was ready to faint. That's when Jeni Brown came into the match and really helped the team pull it together again. She gave us new energy on the floor, and we started communicating again. Once we were playing well again, we handled them pretty easily in the last two games."
Freshman Heather Cushing keyed the offense with a season-high 69 assists. Mandy Rockwell led Whitman in the kill department with 25. Barby Ream added 19, Wendy Wilford had 12 and Cross collected 11. Brown finished with eight kills.
"Jeni is only a freshman, but we have no hesitation to use her when we need her," Snider said. "She's a very good athlete who moves to the ball very well. Her defense is excellent. She goes after the ball with reckless abandon."
Seven Missionaries had double-digit numbers in digs, led by Ream with 26 and Rockwell with 24. Others were Wilford and Cushing with 17 each, freshman Kelly Williams with 15, Paula Cleveland with 14 and Cross with 11.
In a heated defensive battle, the Missionaries pulled out a five-game victory over visiting Linfield to solidify their position as one of the better teams in the Northwest Conference. Winning their fifth straight match overall, Whitman raised its conference record to 3-1 with a 15-12, 11-15, 15-11, 8-15, 15-8 triumph.
Mandy Rockwell covered her part of the court and then some, scooping an amazing 83 digs. She also contributed nine kills, two blocks and a serving ace. She was nicely complemented by Wendy Wilford's 34 digs, eight blocks and 10 kills. Barby Ream threw in 10 blocks, 27 digs, eight kills and an ace. Paula Cleveland rounded out the exceptional defense with 38 digs and three aces.
Setter Heather Cushing contributed 45 assists.
Playing their third match in five days, a tired Whitman team saw its five-match winning streak snapped in an 15-11, 15-4, 13-15, 15-11 loss to Willamette in Sherwood Center.
Mandy Rockwell and Ashleigh Cross with 13 kills each led Whitman. Rockwell added 31 digs, but Paula Cleveland took top honors on defense with 41 digs. Carrie Lee had 26 digs, and Wendy Wilford combined three service aces with nine kills and 34 digs. Barby Ream had seven kills and 20 digs.
Setter Heather Cushing had 35 assists and 15 digs.
After a convincing Whitman victory in the first game, Cascade College picked up its level of play and battled the Missionaries through four games. The scores behind Whitman's non-conference win in Sherwood Center were 15-5, 15-11, 3-15, 15-9.
"It was really nice to bounce back after a loss to Willamette on Saturday and come out playing wel," Whitman coach Dean Snider said. "Additionally, everybody got to see the floor tonight."
Ashleigh Cross, rebounding from the flu, had a great evening with 14 kills, 27 digs and a serving ace. Barby Ream backed her up with 11 kills and three blocks. Wendy Wilford and Mandy Rockwell had 10 kills apiece.
Rockwell also played a great defensive game, coming up with 48 digs. Paula Cleveland helped with 31 digs, and setter Heather Cushing had 52 assists.
Whitman gave Puget Sound, the nation's 10th-ranked volleyball team, all it
could handle before falling in five games in a Northwest Conference
match played
on the Pacific Lutheran campus in Tacoma.The Loggers, who improved to 7-0 in conference and 12-2 on the season, took the first two games before the Missionaries stormed back to win the next two. Puget Sound took the deciding fifth game in rally scoring, 15-3.
Despite the loss, Whitman coach Dean Snider noted that his squad gave the first-place Loggers a tougher match than any other team in the conference.
Ashleigh Cross paced Whitman with 18 kills, 14 digs and five blocks. Mandy Rockwell added nine kills and 14 digs, while Wendy Wilford and Paula Cleveland contributed 17 digs each. Wilford also had four service aces.
Barby Ream chipped in with nine blocks, eight digs and four kills. Setter Heather Cushing finished with 39 assists.
Despite having played just two conference matches at home thus far, the Missionaries improved their league record to 4-3 and their season mark to 8-5.
Mandy Rockwell had a big match for Whitman, combining 15 kills with 22 digs. Wendy Wilford had 12 kills and 16 digs, and Ashleigh Cross totaled 11 kills and nine digs.
Setter Heather Cushing handed out 45 assists and got her hands on 10 digs. Barby Ream added 20 digs, eight blocks and seven kills. Paula Cleveland had 14 digs.
The Missionaries had no trouble dispensing of the visiting Lewis & Clark Pioneers, taking the match in three games in Sherwood Center.
"I was pleased with how well the team maintained a strong intensity throughout the match," Whitman coach Dean Snider said. "They played quite impressively."
Ashleigh Cross dominated the offense with 14 kills. She also sent back three blocks. Mandy Rockwell added 10 kills and a whopping nine service aces.
On the defensive side of the net, Barby Ream led with seven blocks. Wendy Wilford had five blocks while Kelly Williams had four more. Wilford also contributed three aces.
Setter Heather Cushing had 28 assists and four aces.
The Missionaries were not quite ready to play Saturday when they walked onto the floor for first of two non-conference matches in Lewiston, Idaho. Slowed by the flu bug, Whitman dropped its first two games to Western Montana before rallying to win in five games. giving up the first two games.
Mandy Rockwell led the rally with a stellar performance. She combined 28 kills with eight service aces and 21 digs. Close behind was Wendy Wilford with 21 kills, three aces and 18 digs. Ashleigh Cross rounded out the offense with 19 kills; she also had three aces and two blocks. Setter Heather Cushing had 60 assists and three aces.
Exhausted by the come-from-behind victory over Montana, Whitman was no match for Lewis-Clark State, one of the nation's top-ranked teams. The Missionaries lost in three games, although they led 13-8 in the third game before losing 17-15.
Cross had a great serving streak in the third game, racking up four
straight aces before Lewis-Clark rallied. Cross and Rockwell had seven
kills each. Barby Ream had four blocks.
In a scrappy defensive battle, the scrappier team won. Visiting George Fox University edged past the Missionaries in three games, but not easily. In all three games, Whitman fell behind early before nearly climbing back to win.
Mandy Rockwell led the Missionaries with 15 kills and 17 digs. Wendy Wilford played excellent defense, pulling up 24 digs to go witb 10 kills. Also in double digits on offense was Ashleigh Cross with 11 kills.
Barby Ream had 13 digs, nine kills and a pair of blocks. Setter Heather Cushing had 41 assists and 10 digs. Adding to Whitman's defensive effort were Paula Cleveland with 15 digs and Jennifer Brown with 13.
In a fashion similar to the previous Friday's victory at Lewis & Clark, the Missionaries returned home to Sherwood Center and rolled over Pacific in three games.
Barby Ream was the Missionaries' big hitter with eight kills. She also had three blocks and 10 digs. Ashleigh Cross and Mandy Rockwell added seven kills and four service aces each. Rockwell also contributed 13 digs.
Setter Heather Cushing had 34 assists.
With Barby Ream sidelined by a rib injury, Ashleigh Cross limited by a
mild case of whiplash and Heather Cushing slowed by cold and flu symptoms,
Whitman dropped a critical four-game match at Linfield College.Linfield took the first two games before Whitman rallied for a win in the third game. The Wildcats took the fourth game decisively.
"We played pretty well, but without all of our regulars playing at the top of their game, we struggled," Snider said. "Our attack in the middle wasn't as strong, and we had to work so hard for our kills."
Despite lingering neck pain from an off-the-court fall a few weeks ago, Cross paced Whitman with 20 kills, 17 digs and three service aces. "Ashleigh had an outstanding match," Snider said. "It was a real gutsy performance for someone who was still hurting."
Mandy Rockwell added 18 kills, 19 digs and two aces. Wendy Wilford led the defensive effort with 21 digs and collected 11 kills. Paula Cleveland contributed 15 digs. Cushing had 43 assists and nine digs.
Linfield's victory moved the Bearcats ahead of Whitman in the race for the fourth and final conference playoff berth. Earlier in the season, Whitman downed Linfield in five games in a match played in Sherwood Center.
Whitman put its best "walking wounded" lineup on the floor, but host
Willamette played a strong match and downed the Missionaries in three
games."We played well, but Willamette played very well," Whitman coach Dean Snider said. "They just beat us."
Barby Ream returned from a rib injury and led Whitman's attack with nine kills. "Barby is one of the top blockers in the conference, but she was nowhere near 100 percent," Snider noted. "She wasn't able to serve, and the inflammation in her rib case made hitting difficult. We missed her normal attack in the middle."
Despite playing her second game of the weekend on dislocated bones in both feet, Wendy Wilford had nine kills and four digs. "Wendy is playing well enough, but her feet were very sore by the end of Saturday's match," Snider said.
Playing her second game with a sore neck, Ashleigh Cross was limited to five kills and no digs. "With her neck hurting, her approach isn't as aggressive as it normally is," Snider said. "She also doesn't have the same pop on the ball in her hitting."
Mandy Rockwell added 13 digs and three kills for the Missionaries. Heather Cushing finished with 26 assists and eight digs.
It was not the prettiest of volleyball matches when Whitman and Whitworth put their injury-riddled and flu-ridden lineups on the floor at Sherwood Center. The Pirates also lost two players to a game-three collision that left both in need of stitches. By the end of the evening, the Missionaries had kept their playoff hopes alives, battling their way to a five-game victory.
Mandy Rockwell had a superlative match, filling her stat line with a fantastic 34 kills, 23 digs, four service aces and three blocks. Rockwell, who led the NAIA in digs per game at one point earlier this season, began the week in the No. 2 spot, averaging 5.16 digs per game.
"Thirty-four kills in a match is truly outstanding," Whitman coach Dean Snider said. "That is a national-calibre effort. Other coaches notice any time a player breaks 30 kills in a match."
Barby Ream added 16 kills while posting a hitting percentage of over .400. She also contributed 19 digs, an ace and a powerful seven blocks. Ream began the week among the national leaders (No. 7) with 1.46 blocks per game.
Freshman Jenny Brown, starting for an injured Ashleigh Cross, registered double-digits with 11 kills, added an ace and a block, and played an incredible defensive game, leading the team with 34 digs.
Wendy Wilford contributed 10 kills and 19 digs, plus an ace and a block. Helping out defensively were Kelly Williams with four blocks and Anna Truxes with three. Paula Cleveland had 17 digs.
Setter Heather Cushing had an impressive 69 assists while scooping 11 digs of her own.
On this Halloween night, a battle occurred in the Sherwood gymnasium between host Whitman and the nationally-ranked University of Puget Sound. The Missionaries lost in four games, but not without a fight.
Ashleigh Cross, back off the injury list, led the team with 15 kills. She also contributed an ace and 15 digs. Wendy Wilford followed up with 14 kills, 13 digs, and a block. Right behind with 13 kills was Mandy Rockwell, who also led the team defensively with 23 digs and sent bock a pair of blocks.
Barby Ream had three blocks of her own, plus 15 digs. Paula Cleveland aided the team with 15 digs, and setter Heather Cushing had 43 assists and an ace.
Following an emotional presentation to its three seniors -- Donna Hager, Anna Truxes and Wendy Wilford -- at their final home match, the Missionaries wrested a heated five-game victory from Pacific Lutheran.
"It was great to show that we have a real knack for game five," said Whitman coach Dean Snider. He also noted that Whitman needed the victory of keep its playoff hopes alive.
Mandy Rockwell cut through PLU with 26 kills and a pair of service aces. She also stymied the Lute offense, leading Whitman with 33 digs. Barby Ream followed with 24 digs, four blocks and 18 kills.
Wendy Wilford had 15 kills, one more than Ashleigh Cross. Cross also had four service aces and 15 digs. Wilford added 14 digs.
Also helping out defensively were Jeni Brown with 18 digs and Paula Cleveland with 24. Brown also dropped in an ace. Setter Heather Cushing had 70 assists and one ace.
Between three players getting sick (again) and a couple of minor injuries, Whitman was forced to summon a large amount of willpower to defeat Eastern Oregon State University in its own gym. It wasn't textbook volleyball, but the Missionaries got contributions from several players and finished strongly in the fourth game. The non-conference victory raised Whitman's season record to 14-10, its best mark in years.
Mandy Rockwell, last week's Player of the Week in the Northwest Conference, nailed Eastern Oregon with 31 kills to hit the 30-kill-club for the second time this season. She also popped up 28 digs, had a pair of blocks, and aced the opposition twice. Barby Ream also played strong defense, collecting 22 digs and four blocks.
Back from a sprained ankle, Donna Hager had 17 kills. Wendy Wilford had 16 kills, a block and an ace. Setter Heather Cushing had 74 assists and four aces.
Linfield's record will drop to 9-7 if it loses its final two games, which is a good bet since the Wildcats are ending their season against conference leaders Puget Sound and George Fox.
Unfortunately for the Missionaries, however, it appears Linfield will advance to the playoffs in the event of a deadlock. The two teams split their conference matches this season, but Linfield apparently holds the tie-breaker because it also downed Whitman in an early-season tournament match.
There also is a chance that Willamette, which began the week in third place with a 9-5 record, could lose its final two games and slip into a three-way tie with Whitman and Linfield. Willamette also holds the tie-breaker against Whitman, however.
In what turned out to be their final game and largest crowd of the season, the Missionaries fell in a hard-hitting battle to Cascade College.
Mandy Rockwell played strong, answering Cascade College's impressive hitters with 23 kills of her own. She also pulled up 27 digs and a pair of blocks.
Barby Ream, playing like she had never been injured, sent down 17 kills, five aces and five blocks. Defensively she added 20 digs. Kelly Williams chose the last match of the season to strut her stuff, sending back seven blocks.
In her final match of her college career, Wendy Wilford beat 14 kills, pulled up the same number of digs, and helped out Williams and Ream with a pair of blocks. Ashleigh Cross also went double-digits, right behing Wilford with 13 kills.
Setter Heather Cushing had 67 assists.