PHOENIX -- The Eastern Washington University volleyball team battled back from a 2-1 deficit and rallied to win its final match of the Grand Canyon University Tournament in a five-set thriller over Eastern Kentucky, 3-2 (15-25, 25-21, 23-25, 25-23, 15-5), on Saturday, Sept. 3, afternoon.
The Eagles were staring at a 2-1 deficit entering the fourth set, yet the Eagles once against demonstrated a resilient demeanor and buckled down to pick up a 25-23 victory over the Colonels to force a fifth a decisive set. In the final frame, Eastern hit an impressive .579, thanks to 12 kills and just one attack error on 19 attempts, in the set and claim a double-digit victory at 15-5 to lock up the 3-2 victory.
Freshman Katie Mahoney put a cap on a stellar weekend in the desert, as the Dundee, Illinois native posted a match-best, and a new personal-best, 19 kills, while hitting .212. The freshman had recorded the first double-digit kill match of her collegiate career earlier on Saturday with 10 kills against Grand Canyon. In total, Mahoney had a remarkable 29 kills in two matches on Saturday.
Senior setter Sophie Miller also posted a career-best in assists against EKU, as the Federal Way, Washington native handed out a match-best 42 helpers.
"We persevered through this match," said head coach Michael King. "The team raised up and fought their way through this match. Katie and Jessica came through in a big way for us tonight. I'm proud of how we stayed together during a rough first set. We needed everyone to hit the reset button and we did. Big steps were gained today."
Win-Loss Record: Eastern Washington improves to 3-3, while Eastern Kentucky falls to 1-5.
What it Means: Tonight's win gives EWU a winning record at the GCU Tournament, as they went 2-1 in three matches. Eastern defeated Cal State Fullerton in straight sets on Friday night, then loss to host Grand Canyon in four sets earlier this morning, before putting a cap on the weekend with a thrilling come-from-behind five set victory over Eastern Kentucky.
Keys to the Game: Eastern Washington came prepared to play in the fifth and final set. They hit an outstanding .579, which is a team high this season in hitting percentage in a single set, and landed 12 kills, while recording just one attack error, to score a 15-5 set win and score the 3-2 come-from-behind victory.
Top Performers: Freshman Katie Mahoney collected a career-best 19 kills and hit a season-best .212 in the victory. Mahoney added a career-best 11 digs to post her first collegiate double-double.
Redshirt sophomore Ashlee Vaoifi sparked the team defensively by collecting a career-best 22 digs against EKU. The 22 digs is a season high for any player on Eastern's roster.
Sophomore Ka'iulana Ahuna posted her first double-double of her career by matching her career-best in kills with 12, which she set in the first match of the GCU Tournament, and posting 12 digs.
Senior setter Sophie Miller recorded a season-high 42 assists tonight. It is the first 40-assist match for Miller in her career.
Sophomore Jessica Gilbert collected a season-best 16 kills and hit an outstanding .419 in the victory.
Sophomore Regan Harr recorded her first double-digit dig match at Eastern Washington, as she collected 11 digs.
Key Stats: Eastern played arguably its best defense of the season, as they posted a season-best 77 digs and held Eastern Kentucky to a .084 hitting percentage. EWU had a season-best four players record double-digits in digs, as Ashlee Vaoifi had 22, Ka'iulani Ahuna tallied 12 and
Notables: Eastern Washington claims victory over its counterpart from the Bluegrass State in the first meeting between the two Eastern schools.
Freshman Katie Mahoney (19 k, 11 d) and sophomore Ka'iulani Ahuna (12 k, 12 d) each recorded a double-double against the Colonels. Prior to tonight's match, EWU had yet to have a player post a double-double.
Eastern Washington recorded a season-best 10 blocks and held a 10-9 advantage in the category over EKU.
Tonight marked the first time this season that Eastern Washington has played a five-set match. Entering tonight, they had played four three-set matches and one, one-set match.
Tweet of the Game:
What's Next: Eastern Washington plays the final of three-straight weekend tournaments next weekend in Laramie, Wyoming, as they'll participate in the UniWyo Invite. EWU opens the weekend with a 3 p.m. (PT) match against former Big Sky team, Cal State Northridge on Friday, Sept. 9. The Eagles will then play two matches in one day for the final time in the 2016 regular season, as they'll take on Samford (9 a.m.) and Wyoming (6 p.m.) on Saturday, Sept. 10.
For more information on the Eastern Washington volleyball team, follow @EWUVolleyball on Twitter, or like EWU Volleyball on Facebook.
