OLYMPIA, Wash. -- Seniors on The Evergreen State College volleyball team excelled on Saturday, Nov. 9 during the Senor Day match against Oregon Tech providing fans with plenty of exciting plays. The seniors nearly helped the team rally for a win, but Oregon Tech took the first two sets and held on for a 3-2 victory. OIT won the close, hard-fought battle 25-20, 27-25, 24-26, 22-25, 17-15.
Molly Packer (Jr., L), a senior academically at Evergreen, provided 34 digs. Packer finished the season with 495 digs. Fellow senior
Yasmin Dilworth (OH) pounded 14 kills and senior setter
Maloree Calzadillas supplied 27 assists and 13 digs.
Lucendy Perez (Sr., OH) earned 11 kills and 22 digs.
Marin Collins (Jr., MB), a senior academically, added 11 kills, while
Kaiyah Brown (Sr., MB) contributed eight kills and nine blocks. All six seniors were honored in a special presentation after the game.
Amaialyne Cepeda (Jr., DS/L) registered 30 digs for the Geoducks.
Jessica Mitchell (Jr., S) was credited with 18 assists and 11 digs.
Ashley Walker Campbell (Jr., OPP) earned five kills and six block assists, while
Bright Brubaker (Fr., OPP) gained five kills and five block assists.
Molly Grace led Oregon Tech with 20 kills and also produced 21 digs. Savanna Sterck pounded 17 kills for the Owls, while Willow Jacobson amassed eight kills. Kaley Whalen of OIT paced all players with 46 digs. Lucy Boyd dished out 49 assists and made 20 digs. Aleksen Thayer provided seven kills and five block assists.
The game featured 61 kills by OIT and 58 kills by Evergreen. In addition, there were 127 digs by the Owls plus 122 digs by the Geoducks. Oregon Tech improved to 18-12 on the season, 11-11 in the Cascade Collegiate Conference. The Geoducks ended the season with a 4-22 overall record and a 4-18 mark in the CCC.
With the match tied at 2-2, the Owls opened the fifth set with kills by Kate Hicks and Grace, plus a service ace by Boyd to take a 3-0 lead. Evergreen fought back with a 6-1 run that included three kills by Dilworth, as the Geoducks moved in front 6-4. A bit later, the set was tied at 7-7 before TESC went on a 4-0 run. The Geoducks eventually led 12-9, but OIT tied the set at 12-12 several points later on a service ace by Abigail Sorensen.
A kill by Perez put Evergreen in front 13-12. Oregon Tech tallied the next two points, but the Geoducks fought off match points at 14-13 and 15-14. A kill by Perez created a 14-14 tie, and then a combo block by Collins and Brubaker two rallies later tied the set at 15-15. OIT won the next point, and the Owls completed the match with a service ace by Grace for a 17-15 win.
Oregon Tech prevailed in the first set by rallying from a 14-10 deficit. Evergreen also led 18-16 following a kill by Brown. The Owls answered with a 4-0 run for a 20-18 edge. The Geoducks pulled within 20-19, but OIT ended the set with a 5-1 surge.
The second set was close throughout, but Evergreen grabbed a 21-18 lead on back-to-back attacking errors by OIT. The set was tied 21-21 with an ace by Sumerlyn Spencer of Oregon Tech. The teams were tied again at 24-24 and 25-25 before the Owls won 27-25. Jacobson provided the winning kill for OIT.
OIT zoomed out to a 7-2 advantage in the third set, but the Geoducks battled back for a win. Evergreen took its first lead of the set at 12-11 on two consecutive kills from Marin. Oregon Tech eventually led 21-19, but TESC won 26-24. Brown pounded a kill to tie the set at 24. An attack error by OIT put Evergreen in front 25-24. Perez tacked on a kill for the win.
Evergreen forced the fifth set with a 25-22 triumph in the fourth set. A kill by Brown gave TESC a 15-10 lead. Later, a service error by the Owls provided the Geoducks with a 20-16 margin. After OIT scored the next point, Evergreen countered with a 4-2 run, including a pair of kills by Marin, for a 24-19 lead. OIT tallied three consecutive points to get within 24-22, but the set ended on an attacking error by the Owls.
