Sept. 22, 2006

Lutes Defeat No. 25-Ranked Cal State East Bay

Match Statistics

TACOMA – Pacific Lutheran won its fourth consecutive collegiate volleyball match on Friday night, defeating Cal State East Bay, 30-22, 30-22, 30-26.

Win the win the Lutes improve to 9-4 for the season, while the Pioneers, ranked No. 25 in the AVCA Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll, fall to 8-5.

Pacific Lutheran broke a 10-10 tie in the first game on a Cal State attack error, and the Lutes never trailed after that. Cal State never got into a good flow during the first game and ended up with more attack errors (15) than kills (12).

The Pioneers started quickly in the second game, racing to a 6-1 lead, but the Lutes eventually tied the score at 13-13 following successive kills by Stacie Matz. When Matz connected on her third kill in a row, the Lutes were on their way to a 22-17 lead. The Pioneers did pull to within a point, 23-22, on a kill by Kelly Paris, but a service error gave the ball back to the host Lutes. Brenna Archibald served out the final six points, including three service aces.

Like in the second game, the Pioneers started well in the finale, building a 5-1 lead. The Lutes tied it up at 7-7, leading to seven ties and five leads changes. PLU finally took the lead for good at 18-17.

Kati McGinn led the Lutes with 11 kills, while Gina Di Maggio had 25 assists. For the Pioneers, Meghann Adams had 10 kills. Neither team was especially proficient on offense as the Lutes hit just .109 and the Pioneers .020.

Both teams play Saturday night, Pacific Lutheran hosting Willamette at 7 p.m. in a Northwest Conference match and Cal State East Bay facing Puget Sound in a non-conference contest.

- PLU -