LARAMIE, Wyo. -- The Eastern Washington University volleyball team walked away from the UniWyo Invite with a runner up finish after dropping its final match to host Wyoming, 3-0 (18-25, 12-25, 16-25), on Saturday, Sept. 10, night.
The Eagles caught the Cowgirls in the midst of an offensive groove, as the Cowgirls posted a .373 hitting percentage in the match. The win caps off a perfect weekend for Wyoming, as they went 3-0 without dropping a single set on the weekend.
Senior Sophie Miller continued her impressive string of matches back as the team's primary setter, as the Federal Way, Washington native handed out a team-best 23 assists. Tonight's performance marks the seventh match this season that the setter has handed out 20-or-more helpers. Miller was involved all of the court on Saturday night, as she also added a team-best six digs, collected four kills and landed both of the team's service aces against UW.
A pair of sophomores paced the Eastern offense, as Ka'iulani Ahuna and Jessica Gilbert each tallied a team-best six kills.
"We can learn a lot from tonight," said head coach Michael Smith. "We started each set strong, but we gave up points about a third of the way through in each set. Our serving game did not show up tonight, which allowed Wyoming to run its offense with ease.
Win-Loss: Despite the loss, Eastern Washington will leave the Equality State with an overall record above .500 at 5-4. The Cowgirls now even up their 2016 record at 5-5 after a brutal schedule to open the year.
What It Means: Despite dropping its final match in straight sets, the Eagles will walk away from Laramie, Wyoming with a winning record, as they knocked off Cal State Northridge on Friday and completed a thrilling comeback against Samford earlier today to earn a runner up finish at the UniWyo Invite.
Top Performers: Senior Sophie Miller handed out a team-best 23 assists, while also adding a team-high six digs on the night. The setter also hit a perfect 1.000 in the match, as she landed all four of her attacks.
Junior Anya Golubitskikh hit a team-best .333, thanks to three kills on six swings.
Key Stats: Wyoming held the Eagles to a .022 hitting percentage, while also swinging .373 itself. The Cowgirls back court play wasn't the only thing they had clicking on the defensive end, as they also held a 6-1 advantage in blocks.
Notables: Eastern now trails Wyoming in the all-time series, 2-1.
Senior Sophie Miller and sophomore Ka'iulani Ahuna were each named to the UniWyo Invite All-Tournament team. The setter Miller handed out a total of 95 assists, which 45 of those came earlier in the day against Samford.
Ahuna ends her weekend with a total of 35 kills. She opened the Invite with two-straight double-digit matches, which included a career-high 15 kills against Cal State Northridge in the opener. The Hawaiian native followed that performance with her second career double-double match with 14 kills and 14 digs against Samford.
Tweet of the Match:
What's Next: The Eagles will enjoy an off week after playing in three matches in two days in each of the past three weekends. Eastern returns to action on Sept. 22, when they open Big Sky play at Montana. First serve 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.
