Sept. 8, 2007
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Sophomore Nina Sevastopoulos recorded a match-high 11 kills to lead the No. 19 Santa Clara volleyball team to a 3-0 (30-27, 30-16, 30-24) victory over Eastern Washington Friday in its second match of the 2007 Waikiki Beach Marriott Volleyball Challenge in Honolulu, Hawai'i. With the sweep, the Broncos improved to 6-2 on the season, while the Eagles fell to 1-7 overall.
Sophomore Lindsy Evans also had another fantastic night on the court as she tallied 10 kills and four total blocks. She has registered double-digit kills in all but once match this season. Also producing standout performances for the Broncos Friday night were senior setter Crystal Matich, senior libero Caroline Walters and freshman Alex Scoffone. Matich dished out match-highs in assists and service aces with 29 and four, respectively, while Walters recorded a match-best 17 digs. Scoffone was also a force at the net for Santa Clara, posting a match-high five total blocks.
Santa Clara opened the first game with a 7-2 run on kills from Lauryn Dowd, Evans and Brittany Lowe. The Eagles' Alysha Cook put a brief halt in the Broncos' run, 7-3, but SCU bounced right back and jumped to a six-point lead, 10-4, on a service ace from Evans. Eastern Washington fought back and brought the score within one, 15-14 on a kill from Hayley Hills. However, SCU surged on taking a seven-point lead on a kill from Sevastopoulos, 24-17. Once again, the Eagles rallied on service from Mandy Daniels to knot the score, 25-25. Sevastopoulos stopped the Eagles 8-0 run and EWU service error gave the Broncos game one, 30-27.
Eastern Washington put up a tough fight in the beginning of game two as both teams struggled to take control. A block from Dowd and Matich gave Santa Clara a two-point advantage, 8-6, and a kill from Evans put the Broncos up by five, 15-10. Following the media timeout, SCU rode a 12-3 wave on solid serving efforts from Matich and Walters, along with kills from Dowd, Evans and Lowe to win the second game, 30-16.
Leading 2-0, Santa Clara jumped to a 5-1 start in the third game. Although Eagles tried to keep the score close, they were unable to catch the Broncos. Pushing ahead on points from Matich, Sevastopoulos, Nichole Clark and Evans, SCU gained a seven-point advantage, 25-18. A kill from Evans brought the Broncos to match point and Sevastopoulos tallied her 11th kill of the match to close game three, 30-24.
For Eastern Washington, Hills tied the match-high 11 kills, while Daniels recorded 10 digs and two service aces.
The Broncos returns to action on Saturday, Sept. 8 in the final match of the 2007 Waikiki Beach Marriott Volleyball Challenge. Santa Clara will battle No. 16 Hawai'i at 10 p.m. PT.
