KIRKLAND, WA - A two-and-a-half hour match between the Eagles and Warriors last night led to a tight 2-3 loss for the Northwest University volleyball team on Saturday night. The Warriors secured the win in the fifth set, leaving the Eagles behind 27-29, 20-25, 28-26, 25-23, 6-15.

The first set of the match went into extra points as the both teams alternated leads from beginning to end. The Eagles led 20-16 after a service ace from Allie Flynn, but a couple kills from the Warriors followed by an Eagle attacking error tied the set at 21-21. The lead continued to alternate as Kaitlyn Mickle, Karste Wright, and Susanna Bailey kept hope alive with kills. Tied at 27-27 the Warriors took the lead with a kill, and another Eagle error gave the first set to Corban.

The fight was no different to start set two as both team came out firing. The Warriors gathered five points in their favor to take the lead at 13-8, followed by three errors, letting the Eagles back in. CU continued to find open areas on the Eagles side of the court and extended their lead once again, leading to a second set win at 25-20. 

The Eagles came out looking for an upset in the third set, taking the first five points in a row. Their lead was quickly challenged as CU tied the set at 7-7. NU trailed 11-17 but a contained Eagle defense forced one too many Warriors attacking errors. The Eagles totaled four blocks in their the last 11 points, which gave them the vitality they needed to take the set, 28-26.

Lead alternated once again in the fourth set the largest being just two points. Another block by Kylie Lunday and Susanna Bailey, followed by a Warriors attacking error called for a Corban timeout as the Eagles led 24-22. Corban came out with a kill but followed with a service error giving the fourth set win to the Eagles, 25-23.

The Warriors found a rhythm in the fifth set, putting away seven consecutive to jump to a 14-5 lead, and taking the set at 15-6.

Mickle led the Eagles with 18 kills, followed by Wright with 10 and Bailey with nine.

Kalli Budge totaled four kills and assisted on seven blocks. Kylie Lunday and Bailey each assisted on five blocks and Wright on three. 

Morgan Harter led assists with 22, and Allie Flynn recorded another double-double with 21 assists and 13 digs. 

Kelsey Moore led the defense with 29 digs.

Head Coach Steve Bain says, "The only way to measure progress is to play the best and Corban is certainly one of those programs. They are sound in every phase of the game and even though we would have preferred a different outcome, the effort and relentless energy of both teams made this a fun match to be a part of. The takeaway for our group is that we are learning what it takes to compete at a high level and hopefully we can take that knowledge with us as we head into the final four matches of the season."

The Eagles have clinched a playoff berth and will compete in the CCC tournament in just over two weeks. 

Before then, the Eagles have two more weekends of regular season play, starting with Oregon Tech on October 27, in Klamath Falls.