SALEM, Ore. – Another five-set battle on Tim Hills Court was in store for the No. 7-ranked Corban University Volleyball team Friday night against Lewis-Clark State College, jumping out to a 2-0 lead with set scores of 25-17 and 25-20 before LC State stormed back demanding a fifth set that the Navy and Gold secured 15-10 to propel the program to an overall 11-2 record.
"Our consistency level needs to get better throughout our matches," Warriors' head coach Kim McLain stated. "We must stay intentional and focused by not letting up as the match progresses. I was proud of the team finishing strong tonight."
The Warriors (11-2, 7-1) exchange runs early in the first set with the visiting team until a breakaway sequence served by junior setter Abby Guindy, withstanding an LC State (9-5, 6-3) timeout to push Corban to a 15-9 advantage. Two service aces from sophomore outside-hitter Emma Bischoff paired with a solo block from senior middle blocker Allyson Reid, forced the team from Idaho to waste their final timeout during Bischoff's drive to a 21-11 lead. Sophomore outside-hitter Kendra Bittle delivers the final kill to end the set 25-17 and forge the home team a 1-0 start.
Similar to the first, the second set begins 8-6 with a trade of points until junior opposite hitter Gracie Boeder gains three out of four points scored to put the home Warriors at 12-6, consisting of two kills and an assisted block with Reid. This six-point lead proved to be crucial as Corban finished 25-20 seeing a glimpse of what LC State was brewing.
With three early kills from redshirt junior middle blocker Jadah Schmidtke, the Navy and Gold saw a start of 7-4. Imitating the same momentum as the first two sets, a 17-12 score initiated by a kill from junior opposite hitter Makayla Roginski and service ace by sophomore setter Nadeiah Howard made it seem like an early night for spectators. However, the visiting team refused to go home without a fight when a seven-point serving run from Gianna Anderson put LC State in front of Corban 19-17. The set concluded twelve points later 23-25 sending the home Warriors into the fourth set 2-1.
In the fourth set, the Navy and Gold failed to stay on top as the team from Idaho led in points the entire set until a 25-20 score leveled the overall match at 2-2.
Capitalizing on the opponents' errors and nailing critical kills from Roginski and Bischoff, Corban saw LC State use both of their timeouts in the dominate 8-2 start to the fifth set. Ultimately kills from Bischoff, Roginski, and Reid landed the Navy and Gold a 15-10 fifth-set victory over Lewis-Clark State and progress 7-1 in conference play.
Bischoff led the home Warriors offensively with 18 kills and 3 service aces. Reid clocked in the highest hitting percentage of .444 with 9 kills on 18 attempts, while also demanding the game-high of 7 blocks.
Guindy takes the game-high assists with 30 in the five sets played, while Howard's defense earned her a double-double with 19 assists and 12 digs.
Juliauna Forgach Aguilar recorded 22 kills, Abbey Neff dished 26 assists, and Natany Felix Guimaraes defended 29 balls in Lewis-Clark State's effort to reverse the sweep at the C.E. Jeffers Sports Center Friday night.
The hometown Warriors will return to Tim Hills Court late tomorrow night, as Corban will host Walla Walla University (6-5, 5-4) with their first serve scheduled for 9pm.
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