Bearcats Rally Past Northwest Christian

WU setter Brittany Ashby contributed 14 digs to go with 57 assists.

Kelley Lindstrom recorded 17 kills and hit .324 in Willamette's win at Northwest Christian. Photo courtesy: Willamette Athletics

EUGENE, Ore. - Willamette University received 17 kills each from Kelley Lindstrom and Jessica Durham and the Bearcats rallied from a 2-1 deficit to defeat Northwest Christian College, 3-2, in a non-conference volleyball match Tuesday night.

Willamette recorded the victory by scores of 30-21, 28-30, 26-30, 30-27 and 15-13. The Bearcats improved to 3-14 on the season, while Northwest Christian fell to 9-9.

Lindstrom and Durham spearheaded WU's attack. Lindstrom also provided a .324 hitting percentage.

Julie Stutzman added 12 kills and hit .258. Brooke Smith earned eight kills and a .429 hitting percentage. Clare Chedester led all players on both teams with 27 digs.

Overall, five WU players finished with more than 10 digs.

Following Chedester were Edyth Lee-Barnes and Christine Dion with 16 digs apiece.

Durham tacked on 15 digs and setter Brittany Ashby contributed 14 digs to go with 57 assists.

In the fifth game, NCC scored first and held a 2-1 margin, but WU rallied to tie the decisive contest, 6-6.

The Bearcats then scored four consecutive points to take charge of the game.

WU's run featured back-to-back aces by Chedester for the ninth and 10th points.

The Beacons cut the lead to 10-8. WU tallied the next point and eventually led 13-9.

Three consecutive attacking errors by Willamette enabled NCC to get within 13-12, but Lindstrom followed with a kill for the Bearcats to put WU at match point.

Howard registered a kill for the Beacons, before Lindstrom provided Willamette with another kill to end the match, with the 'Cats winning the final game, 15-12.

For NCC, Melissa Bishop achieved 15 kills, while Cotie Howard supplied 14 kills. Ashley Blanchfill added 11 kills and 18 digs.

Cassie Bishop produced a team-high 22 digs, with Mercedes LeClaire providing 20 digs. Alex Jee had 26 assists and Meaghan Hunt earned 24 assists.

WU pounded out 69 kills and hit .197 as a team, while holding NCC to 63 kills and a .161 hitting percentage.

The Bearcats had 10 service aces and 15 serving errors, but committed just three ball-handling errors, compared to 11 by the Beacons.

Willamette held a 4-2 advantage in the first game, but eventually trailed 9-8.

The Bearcats went up 11-9 on a service ace by Dion.

Willamette also led 14-10, following kills by Dion and Stutzman, plus an ace by Durham.

The 'Cats extended their lead to 20-14, before Northwest Christian scored three straight points, ending with an ace by Ashley Blanchfill, to cut the advantage to 20-17.

Willamette responded to the challenge by going on a 6-0 run to take charge of the game.

WU's lead was reduced to 26-20 by three NCC points in a row, but the Bearcats countered with three points of their own on the way to a 30-21 win.

In the second game, Willamette held a 10-7 lead after an ace by Lindstrom. NCC tied the score at 10-10 on an ace by Cotie Howard.

The Bearcats moved into the lead with three consecutive points, but the Beacons answered with an 8-2 run for an 18-15 advantage.

WU was within two points three times, the last at 22-20, before the Beacons took a 25-21 lead.

Willamette pulled within 27-26 and 29-28 on attacking errors by Howard, but the Beacons took a 30-28 win with a kill by Blanchfill.

The Bearcats achieved an early lead in the third game at 4-2.

Northwest Christian rallied to move in front, 7-6, but WU led 13-11 after a kill by Durham and held a 15-13 advantage on a kill by Lindstrom.

NCC regained the lead with three consecutive points to start an 8-3 run.

After building a 21-19 margin, the Beacons added a 6-2 offensive surge for a 27-21 edge.

Willamette scored four points in a row to get back in the game, as Lindstrom and Jordyn Smith provided kills, followed by an ace from Lee-Barnes and an attacking error by Melissa Bishop of NCC.

Blanchfill added a kill for the Beacons, then WU won the next rally to pull within 28-26. NCC ended the game with a kill by Melissa Bishop and a WU setting error.

The Beacons surged out to leads of 3-1 and 7-4 in the fourth game. NCC also held a 14-9 margin after an ace by Tessa Greatwood.

Willamette used a 3-0 run on kills by Stutzman, Durham and Lee-Barnes to get within 14-12 and later tied the game at 16-16.

Willamette eventually took its first lead of the game at 24-23 on a ball-handling error by the Beacons.

After NCC tied the game on the ensuing rally, WU put up four points in a row, including kills by Lindstrom and Christina McGilvray for a 28-24 lead.

The Beacons pulled within 28-27, but WU won the game on a kill by Durham and another NCC ball-handling error.

The Bearcats will play for the second night in a row when they host Linfield College in a Northwest Conference match on Wednesday at Cone Field House. Match time is slated for 7 p.m. (PDT).

Source: Willamette Athletics

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