Flagstaff, Ariz. – The Eastern Washington University women's volleyball team put up a valiant effort Thursday night, Nov. 6, only to see Northern Arizona emerge with a four-set victory in a Big Sky Conference match at the Rolle Activity Center.

Won-Loss Records
Eastern falls to 5-8 in league matches and 9-17 overall with the loss while Northern Arizona improves to 9-4 in conference play and 18-6 overall. Set scores for the match were: 25-23, 19-25, 25-16, 25-15.

What It Means
Despite tonight's setback, the Eagles still find themselves in the hunt for a spot in the Big Sky Tournament after both Southern Utah and Portland State also suffered defeats. All three teams are currently tied for seventh in the conference standings, but Eastern would be the first team left out due to head-to-head losses to both the Thunderbirds and the Vikings earlier this season.

Southern Utah plays at Northern Arizona this Saturday while Portland State plays at Weber State.

Turning Point
After ceding a five-point advantage to the Lumberjacks in the first set, the Eagles came out strong in the second frame, racing out to an 8-1 advantage before NAU took its first timeout. Eastern kept the hosts at arms length throughout the set, never letting Northern Arizona get closer than three points en route to evening the match at 1-1 heading into the break.

NAU seemingly flipped a switch during the intermission, hitting .324 in the third set before swinging at a .606 clip in the fourth frame. The Eagles' offense was unable to get into a rhythm the rest of the way despite staying relatively error-free, but the hosts would not be denied, taking the third and fourth sets to win the match.

Top Performers
Senior Kelsey Julian led all players with 14 kills, hitting .379 on the night (14-3-29). She added a team-best three blocks for a total of 16 points.

Both senior Talia Fermantez and freshman Chloe Weber notched eight kills apiece with Weber topping her previous season high of six kills.

Junior Ryann Ensrud came up with a match-high 17 digs while senior Melissa Waelter set a new career high with 16 digs.

Sophomore Sophie Miller narrowly missed out on her third consecutive double-double, finishing with 24 assists and nine digs to go along with six kills.

Freshman Nicole Rigoni chipped in 19 assists and four digs.

Key Statistics
EWU hit .203 as a team on the night compared to Northern Arizona's .326 clip. The Lumberjacks hit .457 in the third and fourth sets combined, committing just three errors over the final two frames.

The Eagles finished with 57 digs to NAU's 55, but the hosts recorded 12 blocks compared to Eastern's five stops at the net.

Northern Arizona put away three service aces but committed 10 errors from the service line on the night. Eastern recorded just one ace but remained nearly error-free, committing just one miscue.

Quoting Coach King
"I thought we battled well tonight and fought a good fight. We had a tough time finding the floor offensively."

Match Notes
* The Eagles lost for the first time in conference play when winning the second set. Eastern was 4-0 in league matches when they win the second set prior to tonight's match.

* Julian recorded double-figure kills for the 10th time this season and the 25th time in her career.

* Ensrud and Waelter have now recorded double-digit digs in eight matches this season, respectively.

Up Next
Eastern will play its final road match of the season this Saturday, Nov. 8, when it takes on Idaho in Moscow, Idaho. First serve is set for 7 p.m. PT.