A more seasoned Western Baptist squad rolled to a four-game victory over the Missionaries Friday evening in Sherwood Center, spoiling Whitman's season opener. Western Baptist kicked off its season earlier in the day in Sherwood, downing the University of California-Santa Cruz in four games in the opening match of Whitman's two-day, four-team Holiday Inn Express Invitational.
Western Baptist, an NAIA school, and Whitman split their first two games. After the Knights took the first game 30-19, the Missionaries rallied for a 30-28 triumph in game two. The visitors then closed out their victory with two straight wins, 30-21 and 30-23.
"We were up against a very good team in Western Baptist," Whitman coach Dean Snider said. "They have more veteran players than we do, and they also started practicing a week earlier than we did. They're a week ahead of us in terms of team development."
"We graduated three key seniors from last year's team, so we need some time to learn our individual roles," Snider added. "Even some of the returning players this fall are playing in new positions. We were scrappy and played hard against Western Baptist. If we can continue to do that, and build on it, we're going to be fine."
Sophomore Jill Huber paced Whitman's offense with 12 kills and a healthy .409 hitting percentage. Denise Kirstein, another sophomore, chipped in with eight service aces, seven digs and six kills. Senior Claire Novotny collected 20 assists.
Whitman jumped in front 9-7 in game one, but Western Baptist unleashed a 23-10 run to put that game away. The Missionaries won the second game, which featured 17 tie scores, when freshman Megan Bessette served an ace.
The University of California-Santa Cruz withstood Whitman's best comeback efforts in games two and three en route to a three-game victory over the Missionaries Saturday afternoon as the Holiday Inn Express Invitational continued in Sherwood Center.
The Banana Slugs grabbed a decisive 30-19 victory in the opening game and then worked their way to a 23-18 lead in the second game. That's when the Missionaries began to rally, eventually knotting the score at 29-29. Two quick points, however, sealed the win for Santa Cruz, however.
In game three, the Slugs erased a 3-1 Whitman lead to build cushions of 11-4 and 20-10. The Missionaries rallied again, closing to within 28-26 before the visitors slammed the door.
"Our tendency in this match was to let the other team get the early lead before we settled down to play better," Whitman coach Dean Snider said. "We played much better down the stretch of those last two games, but we need to play that way right from the start."
Sophomores Denise Kirstein and Jill Huber keyed the offense with 12 and 11 kills, respectively. Liz Nelson had 10 digs, while Claire Novotny handed out 34 assists.
"Our goal in this match was to pass the ball better than we did in our opener," Snider said. "We were able to do that, but we made far too many attacking errors."
The Lutes of Pacific Lutheran wrapped up a busy day with a four-game victory over Whitman as the Holiday Inn Express Invitational volleyball tournament came to a close Saturday night in Sherwood Center. Because the Lutes only had one playing date left on their schedule, they played all three of their tournament matches Saturday -- and they won all three.
In Saturday's tourney finale, Whitman and PLU traded victories in the first two games before the Lutes closed out the match by winning games three and four. The scores were 30-18, 29-31, 30-16, 30-24.
Despite watching his squad lose all three of its tournament matches, Whitman coach Dean Snider remained optimistic about the season ahead. "What was encouraging is that we continued to improve and get stronger as the tournament continued," he said. "We have a lot of players in new positions. We think we have the potential to get a lot stronger as the season goes on. We hope to be playing much better by the time the conference season begins."
Whitman sophomores Jill Huber and Denise Kirstein were named to the all-tournament team following Saturday's final game. Also named to the team were PLU's Julie Locke and Aimee Sloboden and the University of California's Amy Strang. Jamie Ruda of Western Baptist was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.
The Missionaries took the early lead in Saturday's first game with PLU, jumping in front 7-4. After the Lutes took control with runs of 8-0, 11-1 and 14-2, Whitman trailed by no fewer than six points the rest of the way.
In game two, the Missionaries again held the early advantage and led 18-14 before PLU began to rally. After the two teams deadlocked at 20-20, the Lutes eased in front at 25-21 and 28-24. Five unanswered points got Whitman back in the game, however. Following a 29-29 tie, Whitman reeled off two straight to even the match at one game apiece.
PLU led for much of the third game, never trailing after breaking free from a 5-5 tie. In front 15-11, the Lutes busted the game open with a 7-0 run.
The fourth game was much more competitive. The Lutes led early, but the Missionaries caught them at 13-all and moved in front at 15-13. PLU scored six straight points to break the game's final tie and take a 27-21 lead.
Huber sparked the Missionaries with 15 kills, eight digs, three service aces and two blocks. Freshman Megan Bessette chipped in with eight kills and 10 digs. Kirstein added seven kills, while Claire Novotny contributed 28 assists and 12 digs.
"Our competitive intensity from start to finish was much better against PLU," Whitman coach Dean Snider said. "We scrambled and played hard right from the beginning. We didn't fall behind by wide margins early in the games, which is what we did earlier in the day against Santa Cruz."
Hitting errors remained a problem against PLU, Snider said. "We had 28 hitting errors and not nearly enough kills to balance that out. We served well, though, with 12 aces against just three errors. Our serving helped keep us in the match."
A huge effort from sophomore Jill Huber wasn't quite enough Friday morning as Whitman dropped a five-game decision to Kalamazoo College in the opening match of the Colorado College Invitational. The two teams split the first four games before Kalamazoo nailed down its victory with a 15-11 victory in the fifth game.
Huber hit .395 in collecting a match-high 23 kills. She also had 11 digs, eight blocks and four service aces. "Jill was by far the dominant player in that match," Whitman coach Dean Snider said.
Whitman's Denise Kirstein, also a sophomore, added 20 digs, 12 kills and seven assists. As a team, the Missionaries amassed 79 digs. Leslie Crandell dug 13 balls while Claire Novotny and Megan Bessette each had 10. Novotny also had 49 assists.
Kalamazoo, one of Michigan's NCAA Div. III schools, won Friday's first game 30-28. Whitman took the second game 30-24, but the Hornets rallied back for 30-23 victory in game three. The Missionaries forced a fifth game by posting a 30-23 win in game four.
Kalamazoo, which evened it early season record at 3-3, placed fourth last season in the eight-school Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association.
Colorado College, one of the stronger NCAA Div. III volleyball teams in the West Region, was on the verge of rolling to an easy victory over Whitman Friday afternoon as the Tigers hosted their annual five-team tournament.
After dropping the first two games by scores of 30-15 and 30-19, however, the Missionaries stormed back to win the third and fourth games, 30-26 and 30-28. Whitman also jumped to a 7-6 lead midway through the decisive fifth game. But the Tigers evened the game at 10-10 and then scored five of the last six points to close out the match.
"We played two more really good teams today, and even though we continue to get better, we're still looking for that first victory," Whitman coach Dean Snider said.
Colorado, an NCAA Div. III independent, improved to 5-0 on the season. Whitman dropped to 0-5.
"Colorado will probably be ranked in the top four or five in the West in the early season rankings," Snider said. "We played them toe-to-toe. We played some of our best volleyball of the season in the third and fourth games. We're continuing to get stronger as a team. There are times when wins and losses don't tell the whole story."
Colorado is coming off three consecutive appearances in the Division III playoffs. The Tigers were 19-8 last fall.
Sophomore Denise Kirstein paced Whitman Friday, posting team-high totals in kills with 14 and digs with 21. "It was good to get Denise going on offense," Snider said. Jill Huber contributed 11 kills and 15 digs.
"Megan Kanaga also had a good match against Colorado," Snider said. "We moved her to the right side and she played well. She hit .350 with eight kills, and her three blocks all came at key times in the match."
Elly Smith and Liz Nelson finished with 14 and 11 digs, respectively. Claire Novotny combined 34 assists with 10 digs.
After losing in five games to a pair of top notch teams on Friday, the Whitman women's volleyball team broke into the victory column with a three-game victory over Wisconsin Lutheran College Saturday morning at the Colorado College Invitational.
The Missionaries took the first game 30-21 and then rolled to 30-12 and 30-18 triumphs in the next two games.
"We needed this win to give our team confidence boost," Whitman coach Dean Snider said. "Wisconsin Lutheran didn't have the same firepower as the other teams in the tournament, so it was a match we wanted to win in three games. We played well and got the job done."
Sophomores Denise Kirstein and Jill Huber drove the offense with 10 kills each. Kirstein added 25 digs and three blocks.
Wisconsin Lutheran, a member of the Lake Michigan Conference, saw its season record fall to 1-5 pending its last tournament match later on Saturday.
Whitman won its second match of the day Saturday afternoon, downing McMurry University (Abilene, Texas) in four games as the Colorado College Invitational continued in Colorado Springs. The Missionaries improved to 2-5 on the season while McMurry dropped to 3-5.
McMurry, a member of the 16-school American Southwest Conference, squeaked past Whitman 30-28 in Saturday's first game. But the Missionaries bounced back to win the next three games by scores of 30-19, 30-25, 30-26.
"Like nearly all of the teams in this tournament, McMurry has a good, solid team," Whitman coach Dean Snider said. "We felt we should have beaten Kalamazoo yesterday, so it was important for us to bounce back and show we can beat a good team."
Sophomores Jill Huber and Denise Kirstein again led the way for Whitman. Huber combined 22 kills with 18 digs, six blocks and four service aces. Kirstein contributed 15 kills and 16 digs.
Claire Novotny, Whitman's senior setter, handed out 46 assist to go with 10 digs and two aces.
Both Huber and Novotny were named to the seven-player all-tournament team.
"Megan Kanaga also had a heck of a match against McMurry," Snider said. "She hit .308 with 19 kills and three blocks."
Leslie Crandell paced the defense with 24 digs. She also had 16 kills and two blocks.
A red-hot George Fox volleyball team swept to a 3-0 victory over visiting Whitman as the two schools opened Northwest Conference play Friday night in McMinnville, Ore. The Bruins remain undefeated on the season, pushing their record to 7-0. The Missionaries slipped to 2-6 overall.
Friday's first two games were a battle, with George Fox pulling away to win 30-21 and 30-25. The Bruins then dominated game three, winning 30-10.
George Fox held a slip 19-17 in the opening game before outscoring Whitman 11-4 down the stretch. In game two, the Missionaries rallied from an 18-12 deficit to knot the score at 22-22. The host squad again turned back the challenge, however, reeling off a 6-0 run that produced a comfortable 29-23 Bruin lead.
George Fox bolted to an 8-1 in the third game and was never seriously threatened.
"We really struggled with our passing game tonight, and our play at the defensive end was nearly sound enough," Whitman coach Dean Snider said. "There were a lot of holes in our defense, and we weren't moving to fill those holes as we should. We absorbed a good lesson on what it takes to play winning volleyball within our conference. We were disappointed with the loss, but we were more disappointed with the way we played."
Sophomore Jill Huber had eight kills and 10 digs for the Missionaries. Freshman Megan Bessette added 11 digs, while senior setter Claire Novotny had 23 assists. Sophomore Denise Kirstein had nine digs and four kills.
Three close games all turned against the Whitman women's volleyball team Saturday afternoon as the Missionaries dropped a Northwest Conference match to Willamette in Salem, Ore. The Bearcats won the first game 30-25 and then outlasted Whitman 30-28 and 34-32 in games two and three to wrap up the victory.
"We played a lot better today compared to last night at George Fox," Whitman coach Dean Snider said. "One of our goals today was to play better defense, and we did that. We also played with much better effort. What we need at this point is to play with more composure at critical points in a match."
Sophomore Denise Kirstein led the Missionary offense with 12 kills and added eight digs, both of which were team-high totals. "Denise keeps improving," Snider said. "She's playing well, and her passing continues to get better."
Megan Kanaga, a junior, swatted nine kills for Whitman. "Megan had a good match hitting from the outside," Snider said. "A lot of her kills came at important times in the match."
Jill Huber hit .320 in collecting 10 kills. Claire Novotny handed out 37 assists, served three aces and picked up five digs.
Seemingly on the verge of victory throughout the match, the Whitman women's volleyball team was unable to put the finishing touches on a stubborn Linfield College Friday night in Sherwood Center. Once the dust settled, the visiting Wildcats had escaped with a 3-1 Northwest Conference victory. The Missionaries won the first game 30-25, but Linfield rallied to win the next three, 30-23, 31-29 and 30-28.
The Missionaries fell to 2-8 on the season, 0-3 in the NWC, while Linfield improved to 5-3 overall and 2-1 in conference.
After a hot start to the match in the first game, Whitman seemed to disappear at times, prompting Whitman coach Dean Snider to say the match was lost by the Missionaries more than it was won by Linfield.
"Let's just say this was the one that got away," Snider said. Whitman held leads in all four games and appeared to be the better team, athletically. "Linfield was just good enough not to lose this match," Snider said.
"We need to take that next step to win," he said. "We're playing good volleyball, but we need to develop a maturity in terms of a killer instinct. We need to be able to shake off mistakes."
It was those mistakes that doomed the Missionaries Friday night. Leading 10-6 and 18-16 in the second game, Whitman was never able to finish the Wildcats, who eventually knotted the game at 20-all before running away at the end. Whitman hit .087 as a team in game two, compared to .333 in the first game.
Denise Kirstein and Jill Huber anchored the Missionary attack the entire night. Kirstein finished with 19 kills and 19 digs, while Huber added 18 kills and a .364 hitting percentage. Whitman setter Claire Novotny finished with 49 assists.
Megan Kanaga combined eight kills and eight digs for the Missionaries, while freshman Megan Bessette had 15 digs and six kills.
Linfield's Sara Kaiser had a match-high 20 kills, while teammate Liz McClung seemed to gobble up Missionary attacks all night, finishing with 29 digs in all.
Whitman continues its homestand Saturday at 2 p.m. in Sherwood Center, with Lewis & Clark (0-7, 0-2) providing the opposition.
With Jill Huber, Denise Kirstein and Megan Bessette each hammering 12 kills, the Whitman women's volleyball team knocked off Lewis & Clark in three games Saturday afternoon in Sherwood Center. The first two games were a battle, with the Missionaries winning both by 30-28 margins. Whitman scored a 30-21 victory in game three.
Whitman raised its record to 3-8 overall and 1-3 in NWC action. The Pioneers dropped to 0-8 and 0-2.
Bessette, a freshmen, led Whitman's defensive efforts with 13 digs. Huber and Kirstein, a pair of sophomores, each contributed three serving aces as the Missionaries collected 14 aces in all. Kirstein also had 12 digs, while Huber added four blocks. Setter Claire Novotny handed out 36 assists.
Sophomore Krissy Forry paced the Pioneers with nine kills and 14 digs. Lizzie Woodburn chipped in with 20 assists.
The Whitman women's volleyball team came up short Friday night versus Colorado College, as the Missionaries fell three games to none, 31-29, 30-23 and 30-26. Whitman is now 3-9 on the season, while Colorado stands at 12-3. The match was played in Forest Grove, Ore., hosted by Pacific University.
The Missionaries came out strong in the first game, tallying 18 kills and hitting .255 as a team, in a near first-game victory. Sophomores Jill Huber and Denise Kirstein again led the charge for Whitman.
Huber ended with a team-high 13 kills, while Kirstein had 12 kills and a team-high 15 digs. Claire Novotny had 33 assists and ten digs.
Whitman plays host Pacific University Saturday afternoon in Forest Grove.
Winning in three straight games, 30-28, 30-19 and 30-25, the Whitman College women's volleyball team upended winless Pacific University in Northwest Conference volleyball action Saturday afternoon in Forest Grove, Ore. The win improved the Missionaries conference record to 2-3, while its overall record jumped to 4-9. Pacific is 0-11 overall, 0-5 in the NWC.
Led by Denise Kirstein’s match-high 22 digs and ten kills, the Missionaries hit .143 for the match, compared to .056 for the Boxers.
Senior setter Claire Novotny tallied 25 assists for Whitman. Freshman outside hitter Megan Bessette had nine kills and ten digs for the Missionaries, while Leslie Crandell recorded six kills in only 13 attempts in two games.
Whitman had eight service aces, including two each by Bessette, Jill Huber and Liz Nelson.
The Missionaries return to the home court next weekend with a pair of Northwest Conference matches in Walla Walla. Whitman hosts Pacific Lutheran University Friday, October 5, at 7 p.m. in Sherwood Center. The Missionaries entertain University of Puget Sound Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m.
Despite a strong finish and a thrilling comeback, the Whitman women's volleyball team dropped a five-game Northwest Conference decision to Pacific Lutheran Friday night in Sherwood Center.
The Lutes improved to 5-2 in the NWC, 11-3 overall, by outlasting Whitman by the scores of 21-30, 30-15, 30-26, 26-30 and 16-14. The young Missionaries dropped to 2-4 in conference and 4-10 on the season.
Whitman grabbed an early 4-1 in the fifth game, but PLU reeled off three straight points to forge a 4-4. The game eventually featured 11 tie scores in all. The Missionaries inched in front 12-10, but the two teams deadlocked again at 14 before the Lutes tallied the final two points for victory.
Whitman took charge at the outset of the match, rolling to victory in game one. PLU reclaimed the momentum with an easy win in game two and jumped to a quick lead in the third game.
"That's when our kids started to respond and really compete," Whitman coach Dean Snider said. "We've had trouble competing at times in tough matches against good teams, but we responded well tonight. We got ourselves back in the match midway through the third game and played really well the rest of the way. We gave ourselves a good chance to beat a very good team."
Sophomore Denise Kirstein had a big night for Whitman, slamming a match-high 21 kills and 22 digs. Jill Huber, also a sophomore, had 17 kills, 16 digs, four blocks and three service aces.
Claire Novotny, Whitman's senior setter, combined 48 assists with eight digs. Freshman Megan Bessette and sophomore Elly Smith each had 14 digs.
"We're a relatively young team," Snider noted. "At any given time, we can have all sophomores and freshmen on the floor with our senior setter. The important point is that we're continuing to improve and get stronger. If we can compete the way we did tonight, we're going to be fine."
Undefeated and untamed, the University of Puget Sound women's volleyball team downed the Whitman College Missionaries, 30-26, 30-23 and 33-31, Saturday afternoon in Sherwood Center.
The Loggers ran its unblemished Northwest Conference record to 8-0, and improved to 11-2 on the season. Whitman dropped to 4-11 overall, 2-5 in the NWC.
While the Loggers continues to steamroll through its Northwest Conference schedule, Whitman did not go down without a fight, nearly winning in the first game, then pushing UPS to the very limit in the decisive game three.
Logger Karen Elmgren had a match-high 18 kills, while teammate Adriane Ougendal contributed 13 kills to the two-pronged Logger attack. Jill Huber led Whitman with nine kills and five blocks, while Denise Kirstein finished with seven kills and a match-high 14 digs.
Whitman newcomer Lyndsay Buckingham finished with 12 digs, as did Missionary sophomore Liz Nelson. Missionary setter Claire Novotny had 32 assists on the afternoon.
The Missionaries head back on the road at midweek when Whitman travels to Spokane to take on Eastern Washington rival Whitworth College in a 6 p.m. showdown Wednesday, October 10.
The Whitman College women's volleyball team lost in four games to Whitworth College in a midweek showdown between the two Eastern Washington Northwest Conference rivals, 31-29, 30-28, 27-30 and 30-26, in Spokane.
The loss leaves the Missionaries at 4-12 overall, 2-6 in the NWC, while the Pirates scoot to 14-4 overall, and 7-1 in the NWC, good enough for sole possession of second-place in the conference.
Though the Pirates won three of the four games, its margin of victory was a combined plus-four points for the four games combined. Whitman lost by two in both the first and second games, forcing the Pirates to win by two in the first game.
On the night Whitman was led by sophomore middle blocker Jill Huber with a team-high 18 kills, as well as 15 digs. Denise Kirstein chipped in a well-rounded 16 kills and a match-high 25 digs, as well as three service aces and three blocks. Kirstein is third in the NWC in digs per game, with 4.32.
Missionary freshman outside hitter Lyndsay Buckingham, seeing her first extended playing time of the season, managed 11 kills and 12 digs, playing in all four of the games. The Missionaries had 88 digs total, including 13 by sophomore Liz Nelson, and ten by senior setter Claire Novotny. Novotny added 50 assists.
The Missionaries return to the home courts this weekend when Whitman plays host to George Fox University Friday night at 7 p.m., then hosts Willamette University in a Saturday afternoon match at 3 p.m. Both matches are to take place in Sherwood Center.
The Whitman women's volleyball team rallied from an early two-game deficit to slip past visiting George Fox in five games Friday night in Sherwood Center. The Missionary victory snapped a pair of streaks, ending a string of six straight wins for the Bruins and halting Whitman's three-match losing streak.
George Fox won the first two games by identical scores of 30-24. The Missionaries rebounded to win game three 30-27 and then held off the Bruins for a 32-30 victory in game four. Whitman never trailed in winning the fifth game 15-11.
The young Missionaries improved to 3-6 in the Northwest Conference and 5-12 overall. The Bruins dropped to 6-3 and 14-3.
The victory was a sweet one for Whitman, which had lost competitive decisions in its last two outings to conference-leading and nationally-ranked Puget Sound and Whitworth. The win also avenged Whitman's three-game loss to George Fox last month in Newberg, Ore.
Sophomore Jill Huber paced Whitman with 20 kills, 21 digs, six aces and four blocks. Denise Kirstein, also a sophomore, added a team-high 26 digs to go with 19 kills. Freshman Lyndsay Buckingham chipped in with 16 kills, 20 digs and four blocks.
Other contributors for the Missionaries included their two senior co-captains -- Allison Roth, who hit .407 while slamming 13 kills, and setter Claire Novotny, who collected a season-high 62 assists with 13 digs.
Sophomores Liz Nelson and Elly Smith also made a mark on the match, helping the defense with 21 digs and 14 digs, respectively. The Missionaries finished with four players with at least 20 digs and six players in double digits in that statistical category.
After the Missionaries scored the fifth game's first point and George Fox evened the score at 1-1, Whitman steadily took control, eventually stetching its lead to 8-2. That run included two Kirstein kills sandwiched around a Huber ace down the right side of the court.
The Bruins closed to within 9-5, but Whitman scored three of the next four points on Leslie Crandell's tip and kills by Roth and Huber. Down 12-6, George Fox made one final push, pulling to within 13-11 on the scoreboard. But Buckingham gave Whitman the next two points, tipping one ball over the net and then finishing the match with an ace.
For the second time in less than 24 hours, the Whitman women's volleyball team bounced back from an early deficit to capture a Northwest Conference thriller in Sherwood Center, downing Willamette in five games Saturday afternoon.
The two sides alternated wins in the first four games. Willamette took games one (30-20) and three (30-19), but the Missionaries rallied in each case to win games two (30-17) and four (30-25).
After the visiting Bearcats scored the first point in the fifth game, Whitman raced away to a 9-6 lead. Willamette steadily closed the gap and eventually forged a 13-13 deadlock.
For the second consecutive match, Missionary freshman Lyndsay Buckingham stepped to the forefront to settle matters, slamming a kill and then serving an ace to close out the match. The 5-foot-9 outside hitter from Issaquah, Wash., had used to the same one-two punch to finish off George Fox Friday night.
Whitman improved to 4-6 in the NWC and 6-12 overall. Willamette dropped to 2-8 and 5-10.
Sophomore Jill Huber triggered Whitman's offense, hitting .378 with a team-high 18 kills. Senior Allison Roth collected 10 kills while hitting .692.
Sophomore Denise Kirstein enjoyed another all-around match, combining 14 kills with 28 digs and three blocks.
Buckingham, who played in four of the games, had five kills, four service aces and nine digs. Senior Claire Novotny added 52 assists and six digs to the cause. Others with contributions were freshman Megan Bessette with seven kills and five digs, Elly Smith with nine digs, and Leslie Crandell with six kills.
The Whitman women's volleyball team played well, but not well enough to avoid a three-game Northwest Conference loss to Linfield Friday night in McMinnville, Ore. The Wildcats won 30-28, 30-24 and 30-25 to snap a two-match Missionary win streak.
Whitman is now 6-13 on the season, 4-7 in the NWC. Linfield is 9-7 overall, 6-5 in the NWC.
"We played pretty well, but Linfield played nearly error-free volleyball," Whitman coach Dean Snider said. "They were able to side out consistently. Once they had a two- or three-point lead, it was difficult for us to earn any points. They didn't give an inch, and we weren't able to take one."
As they have for much of the season, the Missionaries played every game close. In the opener, Whitman trailed 25-20 before eventually knotting the score at 26-all. The Wildcats won four of the next six points to win the game and set the tone for the remainder of the match.
Whitman roared back for an early 3-0 lead in the second game, but the Wildcats rallied with a 9-0 run of their own to charge ahead. Whitman got as close as 27-24 in that contest.
In the final game, the teams were deadlocked at 6-6 before Linfield took the lead for good. Whitman would get as close as 16-15 and 27-24 before losing 30-25.
Sophomore middle blocker Jill Huber led Whitman with a match-high 16 kills, 14 digs, two blocks and two service aces. "We tried to beat them through the middle, and I think we did win that battle through Jill," Snider said. "But the rest of Linfield's team played really well on the outside."
Denise Kirstein added 11 kills and 15 digs for the Missionaries. Senior setter Claire Novotny had a match-high 46 assists.
Though the Missionaries hit only .134 as a team, senior outside hitter Leslie Crandell was nearly perfect. In her 12 attacks, Crandell had eight kills and only one error, hitting .583.
Whitman travels to Lewis & Clark for a Saturday evening match versus the Pioneers at 7 p.m. in Portland. Lewis & Clark (0-16, 0-10) lost to Whitworth Friday night at home.
The Whitman women's volleyball team outplayed the winless Lewis & Clark Pioneers Saturday night, winning a Northwest Conference match in three straight sets 30-20, 30-20, 30-19 in Portland. The win bolsters the Missionaries record to 7-13 overall, 5-7 in the NWC. After 11 conference games and 17 overall, the Pioneers are still in search of their first victory of the season.
Sophomore middle blocker Jill Huber led the Missionary attack with 14 kills and three blocked shots, hitting .500 in the conference match.
Sophomore outside hitter Denise Kirstein added eight kills and seven digs, as well as three service aces in a well-balanced team effort by Whitman.
Senior setter Claire Novotny contributed ten digs and 20 assists for Whitman.
All 12 active Whitman players saw playing time in a match Whitman coach Dean Snider considered well-played. "I thought we played a good match of consistent volleyball," Snider said. "Lewis & Clark is struggling, still looking for their first win, so it was good to see us perform well."
Whitman senior Bryn Thorsen played in all three games, contributing six digs and a service ace.
The Missionaries held Lewis & Clark to a paltry .027 hitting percentage, while Whitman hit .188.
The Missionaries are home next Saturday, October 27, versus Northwest Conference rival Pacific University at 2 p.m. in Sherwood Center.
After squandering a big lead in game one, the Whitman women's volleyball team regrouped and rolled to a four-game victory over Pacific Saturday afternoon in Sherwood Center. The scores were 28-30, 30-26, 30-23, 30-24.
Whitman raised its record to 6-7 in the Northwest Conference and 8-13 on the season. Pacific dropped to 3-11 in conference and 3-17 overall.
The Missionaries jumped to a 13-4 lead at the outset of Saturday's opening game. But Pacific closed to within 18-16 and then finally caught Whitman at 22-all. The Boxers won the next point to take their first lead since early in the match. The two teams deadlocked again 24, 25 and 27 before Pacific eked out its victory.
Whitman rallied back behind a balanced attack led by sophomore Denise Kirsteinm who hit .318 with 18 kills. As a team, the Missionaries hit .327 for the match. Jill Huber, also a sophomore, hit .540 with 14 kills and just one attack error in three games.
Senior Allison Roth and freshman Megan Bessette added nine kills apiece for the Missionaries. Senior Kristin Carter hit .583 with eight kills.
Claire Novotny, Whitman's senior setter, collected 50 assists and seven digs.
Kirstein also led defense with 13 digs and three blocks. Bessette had 11 digs and four service aces. Huber chipped in with nine digs, while senior Leslie Crandell combined five service aces with six kills.
Whitman closes out the home portion of its season schedule when it hosts Whitworth at 6 p.m. next Wednesday.
Hosting No. 20 Whitworth, the Whitman women's volleyball team dropped its final home match of the season in three games, 30-22, 30-23 and 30-18 Wednesday night in Sherwood Center. The Pirates entered the match in second place in the Northwest Conference and by the end proved its national ranking to be of merit.
Whitworth is now 19-5 overall, 12-2 in the NWC, while Whitman now stands at 8-14 overall, 6-8 in the NWC.
After the match, Missionaries coach Dean Snider was disappointed. "This was probably our worst outing of the season," he said.
The Missionaries jumped to an early lead in the first game. A pair of Lyndsay Buckingham kills and a service ace from the much-improved freshman gave Whitman a 4-1 advantage, but the lead proved to be the last of the night for the Missionaries.
Whitworth had 50 kills to Whitman's 26, as three Missionaries shared team-high honors with five kills apiece -- Allison Roth, Megan Bessette and Denise Kirstein. Kirstein added a match-high nine digs and a block.
"On any given day this team will come out and play hard," coach Snider said. "And I'd bet on us playing a lot better next time out."
The Pirates had three players with over ten kills. Julie Weatherred managed 13 kills, while Lynsey Wagstaff and Kristen Turner hit 11 and 12, respectively. As a team, Whitworth hit at a .291 clip.
The Missionaries end the season on the road this weekend, when Whitman heads to Tacoma to take-on Northwest Conference foes, Pacific Lutheran on Friday, November 2, and Puget Sound, Saturday, November 3.
Despite posting a strong defense, the Whitman women's volleyball team dropped a four-game Northwest Conference decision at Pacific Lutheran Friday night in Tacoma. After the Lutes won the first two games 30-25, Whitman rallied to win the third game by the same score. The hosts then closed out the match with a 30-24 victory in the fourth game.
"We played very solid defense," Whitman coach Dean Snider said. "We had five players in double digits in digs, and as a team it was second-highest dig total of the season.
The Missionaries finished with 112 digs, nine more than the Lutes. Whitman's season-high total in digs was 115, although that number came in five games.
"Overall, I was pleased with how we played," Snider said. "PLU seemed to have a little edge on us all night. They are a little more experienced than we are, and I think that made a difference."
The loss drops the Missionaries to 8-15 overall, 6-9 in the NWC. The Lutes are now 10-5 in the NWC, 17-6 overall.
Sophomore Jill Huber had a huge night for the Missionaries. She managed a match-high 20 kills in 38 attempts, with only three errors for a .447 hitting percentage, one of her best performances of the season. Huber also added 12 digs, three blocks and a service ace.
Claire Novotny, Whitman's senior setter, kept the offense clicking with a match-high 54 assists. She also chipped in with 16 digs.
Lyndsay Buckingham, a freshman outside hitter, had a good all- around match, combining 13 kills with 25 digs. Others with notable kill numbers were sophomore Denise Kirstein with 10 and senior Leslie Crandell with nine. Kristin Carter, a senior middle blocker, also had a nice night at the offensive end, contributing seven kills while hitting .333 in three games.
Kirstein keyed the defense with 28 digs. Freshman Elly Smith added 17 more.
Whitman ends the season Saturday at UPS.
Puget Sound claimed a share of the Northwest Conference volleyball title by downing Whitman in three games Saturday evening in Tacoma. The Loggers were victorious by scores of 30-26, 30-20 and 30-19 to run their regular season record to 14-2 in the NWC and 17-4 overall.
Puget Sound and Whitworth finished in a first-place tie, but the Pirates claimed the NWC's automatic berth to the NCAA Div. III national playoffs by virtue of tie-breaking criteria. Puget Sound must wait and hope for an at-large berth in the national tournament.
The Missionaries stayed close in all three games on Saturday but were unable to break through a stubborn Logger defense. Game one was tied at 13-13 before Puget Sound jumped ahead 22-17 and then wrapped up the 30-26 win. Game two was deadlocked at 17-17 before the Loggers nailed down that victory with a 13-3 scoring spree.
Senior Leslie Crandell and freshmen Megan Bessette collected two kills each as Whitman grabbed the early 10-6 lead in the third game. But the Loggers rallied back for a 22-17 lead and never looked back.
Sophomores Jill Huber and Denise Kirstein led Whitman's offense with seven kills apiece. Huber added five blocks. Bessette finished with six kills and a team-high 10 digs.
Claire Novotny, Whitman's senior setter, contributed 23 assists, five digs, three blocks and two service aces.
Whitman ended its season at 6-10 in the NWC and 8-16 on the season. The Missionaries finished in sixth place in the nine-school conference.