LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Facing match point five times and finding themselves down 2-1 in the fourth set, the Eastern Washington University volleyball team battled for a 3-2 victory over Binghamton Friday evening (Aug. 25) in their second match of the UNLV Invitational. With the victory, the Eagles move to 1-1 while the Bearcats fall to 0-2.
"The team showed great grit tonight. I'm proud of how we came back in the fourth set to streth the match to five sets," said head coach Michael King. "Ashley Seiler put the team on her shoulder for portions of the match. She had a will to win."
The Eagles jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first set and Binghamton responded with a 4-0 run of their own to tie things up. EWU used a 3-0 lead midway through the first to pull ahead 11-9 as both sides continued to trade points. Binghamton came from behind 18-17 to score six straight points and eventually took the first set 25-19.
Set two started out much like the first, with the Eagles leading 3-0 only for the Bearcats to respond with their own 3-0 run. A 7-1 run quickly put Eastern back up 9-4. After Binghamton tied things up at 13-13, the sides continued to exchange leads as they each strung together runs of consecutive points. With the set tied at 21-21, Eastern gathered their momentum to score four straight and claim set two 25-21.
Eastern Washington found themselves down 11-5 in the third set. Four straight points brought them within two, 11-9 and they eventually worked to tie the set up 15-15. With the set tied 21-21, Binghamton scored two points to force an Eagle timeout. Facing set point, Ashley Seiler came through with a kill but it wasn't enough as the Bearcats hung on for a 25-22 victory.
The decisive fourth set was a battle from the beginning. Both sides traded points as neither team held more than a two-point lead for most of the fourth set. At one point, the Eagles took a timeout after trailing 22-18. Taylor Larsen delivered a kill following the break, and Catelyn Linke and Jayde Robertsen followed suit with kills of their own in addition to a service ace from Megan LaFond to come within one, 23-22.
Up 24-23 and looking to close it out, Binghamton would call a timeout. Following the break, Emma Dunn delivered a kill to keep Eastern alive at 24-24. BU did not back down, coming up with two quick points to take a 26-25 edge. Another Seiler kill and a Binghamton error gave the Eagles a 29-28 advantage, only for BU to tie the set back up at 29-29. A BU error gave Eastern the edge and Linke delivered the set-winning service ace to keep Eastern alive, 31-29.
In set five, the Eagles jumped out to what felt like a comfortable 11-6 lead. However, the Bearcats scored six straight points to take a 12-11 lead. A kill from Seiler tied things at 12-12, only for Binghamton to fight back and regain the edge. EWU then battled and delivered four straight points following a kill from Seiler and three Bearcat errors to take a 16-14 fifth-set victory as they claimed the match 3-2.
Top Performers: Ashley Seiler set a career high 28 kills in her 10th career double-double. This was her second straight double-double, as she also ranked second on the team with 18 digs and set a career high in total attempts (73).
Jayde Robertsen led the team with six blocks and ranked second with seven kills. Regan Harr dished out 26 assists, while freshman Emma Dunn added 24. Megan LaFond led the team with 23 digs and two service aces.
Turning Point: The Eagles faced match point five separate times. In the decisive fourth set, freshman Emma Dunn delivered her first kill as an Eagle to tie the set up at 24-24. Freshman Catelyn Linke also served up the set-winning ace to give Eastern a 31-29 set four victory.
Team Highlights: Eastern Washington hit at a .191 clip (62k-27e-183ta), a major improvement from the .042 clip they hit at earlier in the day against UC Davis.
Ashley Seiler collected the team's second consecutive double-double. Emma Dunn (24 assists, seven digs) and Regan Harr (26 assists, eight digs) also neared double figures.
What's Next: The Eagles close out the UNLV Invitational tomorrow (Aug. 26) as they play the host school at 2 p.m. to round out competition for the weekend.
