WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL TEAM STANDS FIRM AT HOME
Point Loma Nazarene University’s Golden Gymnasium was rocking in the stands and on the court Oct. 2 as the Point Loma volleyball team defeated California Baptist 25-23, 20-25, 25-17 and 25-19 in front of a pink-clad student section as part of the Side-Out Foundation’s Dig Pink campaign.
With the victory, PLNU is now a half-match up for first place in the Pacific West Standings at 6-0 (9-5 overall). This was also the second straight loss for the Lancers, who fell to 8-6 on the season and two games off the pace in the PacWest standings at 4-2.
PLNU’s Heather Leavitt recorded a double-double with a match-high 20 kills and 14 digs, but it was a team effort that led Point Loma to the victory over its longtime conference foe. Five Sea Lions had eight or more kills in the match, including freshman middle blocker Bethany Mandon, who posted a career-best 11 kills with just one error for a .385 hitting percentage. Fellow middle blocker Alyssa Dwyer added nine kills and a .300 hitting percentage, while Briana Vieth and Delaney McCraney chipped in with eight kills apiece.
It was Savannah Wedemeyer who was the distributor for the Sea Lions all night. She had 49 assists in the four sets as PLNU posted assists on 56 of 58 kills. Christin Fisher also added 19 digs and Mandon paced the squad with four blocks.
“I don’t know if it was emotion or focus tonight, but there was definitely something different about this match, and really this week,” said Point Loma head coach Jonathan Scott. “We prepared better than we had all season and it showed.”
The Point Loma volleyball team donned pink jerseys and wore the initials of a loved one affected by cancer on the sleeves of their warmup shirts. The Point Loma Athletic Department also collected donations for the Dig Pink Campaign. For more information, visit www.plnusealions.com.
“The Dig Pink campaign is something that has been embraced by the volleyball community at all levels, so here at Point Loma, we are happy to be part of something bigger than ourselves,” said Scott. ORIARTE NAMED PacWest SOCCER DEFENDER OF WEEK
Point Loma sophomore goalkeeper Ariel Oriarte has been selected the Pacific West Conference Defender of the Week for the week of Sept. 22-28.
Oriarte earned her first shutout of the season in Point Loma’s 1-0 win over Azusa Pacific. The San Diego native (Mira Mesa High School) made seven saves, two shy of her career-best mark, as the Point Loma defense held strong to make a goal in the 14th minute stand up for the victory over its longtime rivals. She is now 3-1-0 in her career against the Cougars.
Oriarte now leads the PacWest in goals-against average (0.31) and save percentage (.933). She has 14 saves on the season and one shutout.