MCMINNVILLE, Ore. – In the last home match of the 2021 spring season, the Linfield Wildcats fell 3-0 to the Willamette Bearcats at Ted Wilson Gym on Thursday night.
 
The Wildcats honored seniors Regan Dean and Tessa Doerfler with a pre-match senior night ceremony. Dean had six kills, 10 digs and an ace in the match. Doerfler had eight digs and two assists.
 


Willamette took all three sets, by the scores of 25-17, 25-17 and 25-16. Linfield was down 24-11 in the first, but won six straight points to pull to within 24-17, but lost the set on a kill by Willamette's Lexi Martin.
 
The Bearcats won the first seven points of the second set, when Wildcats coach Haley Doerfler called a timeout. Linfield responded by winning the next five points, but Willamette served back with a 5-0 run of its own, taking the second set on a block by Martin.
 
Trailing in the third set, 9-2, Linfield narrowed the margin and came within 11-10 on an assisted block by Aylea Dixon and McKenzie Brock. Willamette won the last four points of the match to take the match on a kill by Kyana Benjamin.
 
Natalie Klotz led the Bearcats with 12 kills, Dani Queja had nine. Shyla Sato had four service aces, Elena Vazquez led the team with four blocks. Emma Porter had a double-double with 22 assists and 15 digs. Sato had 15 digs.
 
For the Wildcats, Brock had five total blocks, Dixon had four. Dixon led the team with 15 assists and 11 digs. Raelynn Hammock had five kills and seven digs. Maya Nakasone had five digs. Seraiah Ochse had two blocks and four kills.
 
Linfield is now 0-7 on the season with one match remaining. Willamette improves to 2-4. Both teams are playing a Northwest Conference only schedule during this spring.
 
UP NEXT
The two teams meet again in Salem on Friday night at 7 p.m. That match is the season finale for the Wildcats.