CHENEY, Wash. — Eastern Washington fell to Portland State in three sets Saturday afternoon, dropping to 8-12 overall and 2-6 in Big Sky play.
Kalista Lukovich led the Eagles with 10 kills on .200 hitting, adding eight digs, two solo blocks and a service ace for a team-high 13.5 points.
Jailyn Davenport directed the offense with 15 assists while adding three kills on .400 hitting, five digs and two solo blocks.
Erin McInnes provided a spark with four kills on .333 hitting, while
Elle Bruegman paced the back row with 12 digs. Eastern totaled eight blocks in the match, including three solo blocks from
Ziah Sneva.
"This is super disappointing. It's gut-check time," head coach
Jon Haruguchi said. "What's it going to take for us to find a way to win? Where's the will to win going to come from? I think we have to reframe, go back in, get to work on Monday."
Portland State took control of the opening set, 25-12. Eastern remained within striking distance early, trailing 8-6 behind a pair of Lukovich kills and two solo blocks from Davenport. The Vikings began to pull away from there, using a 9-2 run to build a 17-10 advantage before stretching the lead to 21-10. Lukovich continued to provide offense late, scoring three of Eastern's final four points, but Portland State closed out the set to take a 1-0 match lead.
The Eagles responded with a stronger effort in the second set before falling, 25-20. Eastern trailed 16-11 before mounting a 6-1 run behind kills from Lukovich and
Quincy Moran and a dominant stretch at the net from Sneva, who recorded three solo blocks to help pull the Eagles even at 17-17. Lukovich followed with a solo block to tie the set again at 18, but Portland State answered with five consecutive points to regain control at 23-18. Eastern made one final push, highlighted by a block from
Sidney Gray and McInnes, before the Vikings closed out the set for a 2-0 match advantage.
Haruguchi went deeper into the lineup during the match, giving several Eagles additional opportunities as Eastern searched for a spark.
"People deserve a chance after what I've seen in practice," Haruguchi said. "It was nice to get Quincy an opportunity, Erin an opportunity, Ziah. But we still have to produce. I think that was the ultimate goal, how are we going to find a way to produce some points here."
Eastern continued to battle in the third, pushing Portland State throughout a 25-22 setback. After trailing 8-6, the Eagles worked their way back behind kills from Davenport,
Judith Bolomboy and McInnes, eventually moving in front, 12-10. Neither team was able to create much separation through the middle of the set before a Davenport kill and Lukovich solo block helped Eastern take a 19-17 lead. Lukovich followed with consecutive kills as the Eagles maintained a 21-19 advantage. Portland State responded down the stretch, tying the set at 21 before closing on a 6-1 run to complete the sweep.
Bruegman finished with a team-high 12 digs but acknowledged the Eagles have areas to clean up moving forward.
"It was tough all the way around," Bruegman said. "Every part of it wasn't our best."
Despite the setback, Haruguchi emphasized that the Eagles' focus now turns toward getting back into the gym and continuing to work.
"We just came up real short today," Haruguchi said. "I think we just have to keep working at it."
Up Next
Eastern will split next week between the road and home, traveling to Cedar City, Utah, to face Southern Utah on Thursday, Oct. 22 at 5:30 p.m. PT before returning to Cheney to host Utah Tech on Saturday, Oct. 24 at 2 p.m.
ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.
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