GRAND FORKS, N.D. -- The Eastern Washington University volleyball team fell victim to a late rally in the third set, as North Dakota rolled off the frame's final eight points to collect a 25-23 set victory and hand the Eagles a 3-0 (19-25, 21-25, 23-25) loss on Thursday (Nov. 3) night in Big Sky Conference action.
EWU had its sights on extending Thursday's match, as the Eagles held a 23-18 advantage late in the third set. The Fighting Hawks started to chip into the Eastern lead point-by-point and creeped to within two points at 23-21 to force Eastern Washington to take a timeout. The break could not bring a halt to North Dakota's momentum, as UND would continue its late rally and picked up a 25-23 win to conclude a straight-set victory over the Eagles.
Neither team could get into much of a rhythm on Thursday, as the teams combined for 58 total errors. Eastern Washington committed 33 of those miscues, 20 of which were hitting errors that limited the Eagles to a .123 hitting percentage against the Fighting Hawks.
Eastern's defense came to play on Thursday night, as the Eagles out-dug UND, 63-61, while keeping pace with North Dakota in the blocking category, as both teams had eight total blocks. Redshirt sophomore Ashlee Vaoifi led team with 16 digs, while sophomore Jessica Gilbert paced EWU with three total blocks thanks to six block assists.
Junior Ashley Seiler collected her seventh double-double over the last 10 matches, with a team-best 11 kills and 10 digs. Senior setter Sophie Miller also picked up a double-double by handing out a team-high 26 assists, while picking up 11 digs.
"I like how we played tonight and I liked the way we competed, but too many unforced errors really hurt," said head coach Michael King. "We have to get better from the service line in order to put pressure on our opponents. If we can do that, then it will give us an opportunity to win more matches. I believe we can improve there and continue to get as a team better down the stretch."
Win-Loss Record: Eastern Washington falls to 5-6 in Big Sky play, while they drop to an even 11-11 overall this season. For North Dakota, tonight's victory keeps them atop the Big Sky standings at 11-2, while the Fighting Hawks also pick up their 20th win of the season as they are now 20-9.
What It Means: Tonight's loss puts Eastern below the .500 mark in Big Sky play for the first time this season, as they are now 5-6. The Eagles also fall back to an even .500 this season at 11-11 after 22 games.
Key Stats: Thursday's match probably won't make the end of the year highlight film for either team, as both squads combined for 58 total errors. Eastern Washington committed 33 miscues, while North Dakota had 25 errors on the night.
Turning Point: It looked as if Eastern Washington was cruising in on a victory in the third set with a 23-18 lead, but North Dakota closed the frame out on an 8-0 run to win the set, 25-23, and hand the Eagles a straight-set loss.
Top Performers: Junior Ashley Seiler picked up her seventh double-double of the year with a team-best 11 kills and 10 digs.
Senior Sophie Miller collected her ninth double-double of 2016 on Thursday with 26 assists and 11 digs. The setter has now picked up nine double-doubles over the last 11 matches.
Notables: North Dakota moves to 9-1 all-time against Eastern Washington and has now won six-consecutive matches against the Eagles.
Senior Sophie Miller extended her double-digit assist streak to 22 matches with a team-best 26 assists against North Dakota. It is also her sixth-straight match with 25-or-more assists.
Eastern falls to 3-7 in road games this season.
Sophomore Ka'iulani Ahuna picked up 13 digs against North Dakota and she now double-digit digs in 10 of her last 11 matches.
The Eagles are now below the .500 mark in conference play for the first time this season, as they are now 5-6.
What's Next: The Eagles will play its final road game of the 2016 regular season this Saturday (Nov. 5), as they'll take on Northern Colorado. First serve from Greeley, Colorado is set for 6 p.m. PT.
For more information on the Eastern Washington volleyball team follow @EWUVolleyball on Twitter or like EWU Volleyball on Facebook.
