Linfield University Athletics

McMINNVILLE, Ore. – Linfield volleyball (6-5, 3-1 NWC) earned their second win of the weekend with a 28-26, 25-20, 25-20 sweep of Lewis & Clark (4-7, 1-3 NWC) on Saturday night. It's the Wildcats first 3-1 start to conference play since 2014.

Linfield had to rally in a back-and-forth opening set. The Wildcats trailed 21-14 before mounting a 10-2 run that included two kills from Katelyn Mawdsley, a Margaritah Banuelos ace and back-to-back Naia Alefaio-Foifua aces to take a 24-23 lead. Lewis & Clark fought off set point and eventually moved ahead 26-25, but Tatum Montiel answered with a kill before consecutive Madison Millard kills completed the comeback, 28-26.

The Wildcats carried that momentum into the second set. After the teams traded points early, Linfield broke an 8-8 tie with three straight points and later used a six-point run to stretch its advantage to 17-10. Lewis & Clark pulled within two at 21-19, but Linfield responded with four of the final five points, capped by a Nora Myre kill, to take the set 25-20. 

Linfield again had to battle from behind in the third, erasing an early 6-3 deficit before the teams went back and forth through a 20-20 tie. Mawdsley gave the Wildcats the lead with a kill before Myre took over at the service line. Myre delivered four consecutive aces to close the match and give Linfield a 25-20 victory.

Montiel led a balanced Linfield attack with 10 kills on 16 attempts, hitting .375. Myre added nine kills, five service aces and seven digs, while Millard totaled seven kills on 16 swings for a .313 hitting percentage. Hough and Mawdsley each contributed six kills.

Linfield also made its presence felt from the service line and at the net, finishing with 12 aces and eight total blocks. Ascha Nielsen recorded two solo blocks and three block assists, while Hough added three block assists and Millard contributed a solo block and two block assists. Banuelos collected a team-high 13 digs along with three aces, while Alefaio-Foifua added 10 digs, seven assists and two aces. Kaarina Geymann directed the offense with a team-high 16 assists.

The 'Cats look to carry the momentum into Homecoming weekend, hosting Pacific Lutheran and Puget Sound on Friday and Saturday night inside Ted Wilson Gymnasium.
 
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