CHENEY, Wash. — Eastern Washington earned a 3-1 victory over Weber State behind a balanced offensive and defensive effort.
Kalista Lukovich led the Eagles with 19 kills while adding seven digs and four block assists.
Aspyn Reed delivered 14 kills on a .417 hitting percentage, while
Sidney Gray added nine kills on a team-best .500 clip with five total blocks.
Jailyn Davenport recorded a double-double with 39 assists and 12 digs, while
Elle Bruegman anchored the back row with 16 digs and four service aces. Eastern finished with 54 kills, 62 digs and six aces while hitting .233.
Weber State took the opening set, 25-19, after using an early run to build separation. Eastern stayed within reach behind kills from
Reese Betschart, Lukovich and Reed before making a late push. Trailing 24-15, the Eagles fought off four consecutive set points behind kills from Lukovich and Betschart and an ace from Bruegman before Weber State closed out the frame.
Eastern responded immediately in the second, jumping out to a 6-1 advantage behind consecutive Bruegman aces and a solo block from Davenport. Weber State pulled within one, but the Eagles regained control behind Lukovich, Reed and
Carlyn Rapozo-Kamoku. Eastern eventually built a 20-12 lead before closing out the set, 25-18, to even the match.
The Eagles carried the momentum into the third, racing ahead 7-1 behind Lukovich, Gray and another Bruegman ace. Eastern extended the lead to 15-5 as Reed added a solo block and
Makena Gamby delivered an ace. Weber State cut the margin to 20-16, but Eastern held off the rally and secured a 25-19 win.
Eastern completed the victory with a fourth-set comeback. Trailing 17-14, the Eagles produced a pivotal 5-0 run highlighted by two Gray kills, a Gray and Davenport block and a Lukovich kill. Reed eventually delivered the match-clinching kill for the 25-22 victory.
"I'm really proud of this team," head coach
Jon Haruguchi said. "We had a very tough week of practice, but they didn't allow that tough week to dictate what they were going to do tonight. That's a true testament to the things they've been doing off the court to come together."
Davenport echoed that sentiment after directing Eastern's balanced attack.
"I have so much confidence in my teammates right now," Davenport said. "I feel like they have my back no matter what. I think we played with that camaraderie tonight, and coming together like that was awesome for us."
Davenport also credited Reed's aggressive approach after the outside hitter finished with 14 kills.
"Aspyn did amazing tonight," Davenport said. "She was playing with such aggressive fire that I knew I could get her the ball and she would put it away. Everybody was up, everybody was ready, and that helped me spread our offense and get good looks."
Haruguchi also praised Eastern's serving effort.
"We don't serve for aces, we serve to disrupt," Haruguchi said. "There were a lot of times when our servers really disrupted what they wanted to do offensively. I was really proud of them for that."
Up Next
Eastern Washington takes on Idaho State on Saturday, Sept. 26 at 12 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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