SPOKANE, Wash. - Facing its Pacific Northwest rival University of Portland, the Gonzaga University women's volleyball team won its third consecutive match in a sweep (25-14, 25-14, 25-16) over the Pilots in the Martin Centre.
Savannah Blinn led all attackers with 14 kills as the Bulldogs moved to 11-12 overall and an even 7-7 in West Coast Conference matches. Portland's struggles continue, as they fall to 0-23, 0-14 WCC.
"If you scripted today out, this is what it would have looked like," head coach Dave Gantt said. "We were really steady and did not give up any large runs. Any win in our conference is a good one and we did a great job running our offense. We put a lot of pressure on Portland and I am happy for the team."
The 11 wins mark a team-best under coach Gantt whose previous best was 10 in 2009. The seven WCC victories are a team-best since 1994.
Much like its previous two matches, the Zags came out aggressive and grabbed a lead in each of the sets. A 6-1 and a 4-0 run paced the Bulldogs in the first set. Portland used both of its timeouts but Blinn's five kills and sophomore Jordan Gasser's four were too much for the visitors. GU took the 1-0 edge after out hitting UP .423 to -0.42.
Deanna Nielson had a strong second set with four kills on five swings. Senior Kristina Lavrisha lifted the Zags with a service en route to a 6-1 run. Portland would use both timeouts again but the Bulldogs offense was on point. GU cruised to a 2-0 lead at intermission on a Nielson set clinching kill.
Gonzaga distanced themselves in the third on a 4-0 run, pushing the Zags to a 10-5 edge. The Bulldogs would grab an eight point advantage 21-13 on an Imani Wimbush kill down the middle. Wimbush would finish the day with six kills and six blocks.
"Deanna and Imani made the most of their attacks," Gantt explained. "We got the ball to the right hitter and good things happened. When we set our middle's, it takes pressure off the outside hitters. We sustained a flow to our offense these past few matches."
Senior Kennedy Wesley made her appearance in the match count, as she was responsible for the match winning kill into the Pilot defense.
Lauren Joseph and Lyndsay Palmer split the setting duties once again. Joseph contributed 17 assists and five digs while Palmer had a double-double (13 assists, 11 digs). Kathleen Wright gave the Pilots' serve receive fits with another two aces on the day.
"Lauren and Lyndsay played at the level we know they can play at," Gantt said. "Their numbers in our system are very telling of how well they played. They got the ball to the right hitters and it was exactly what we needed. Kudos to them."
As a team, Gonzaga out attacked Portland .337 to .068.
The victory over Portland gives Gonzaga the season sweep over the Pilots. It is the first time the Bulldogs have taken the season series over three WCC opponents (UP, Santa Clara and San Francisco) since 1994. That year under Sean Madden the Zags claimed the season sets over Portland, Saint Mary's College and Santa Clara to finish with a 17-12, 10-4 WCC.
On the horizon for the Bulldogs are battles with two ranked WCC foes. Thursday the Zags travel to Provo to face No. 21 BYU and the weekend ends with a Saturday contest at No. 8 San Diego.
"We have to carry the idea in our head that we are capable in our next matches," Gantt said. "These are tough road matches and they are expecting us. This will be a nice challenge for us and we look to finish strong."
