Walla Walla Community College’s volleyball team captured another lopsided victory as the Warriors finished off Big Bend in only three sets, 25-14, 25-14 and 25-18, at the Dietrich Dome on Wednesday, for their third consecutive sweep.
The last two matches in Walla Walla’s winning streak have come at the expense of their first opponents in the Northwest Athletic Conference’s East Division. The Warriors swept North Idaho on Saturday.
Walla Walla (11-6 overall, 2-0 in the region) now sits atop the East standings ahead of a challenging schedule, which includes powerhouse Blue Mountain on Wednesday.
The Timberwolves have won four straight conference championships.
“It’s nice to start out that way,” Warriors coach Chelsie Speer said. “I wouldn’t have expected it — not that we don’t have the ability to do it — but I see a top team on a national level coming in, and I expect them to be a little tougher.”
Walla Walla dominated Big Bend.
WWCC sophomore Samantha Grove scored 11 kills, while classmate and Pomeroy High graduate Savannah Ruark tallied 10.
Sophomore Dani Burke supported the attack by making 18 assists, and freshman Kali Avila added 16.
Meanwhile, sophomore Tori Wegdahl hustled to make 19 digs.
The Vikings managed an early lead in the first set, but the Warriors took over with a big scoring run and never looked back.
Walla Walla scored another big win in the second set, which featured Ruark’s powerful kill and later Wegdahl lunging dig from the back row.
The Warriors then took the third set to finish the match. Keep in mind last-place Big Bend has only one victory out of 18 matches this season.
“I thought we were up and down a little bit,” Speer said. “I thought at times we kinda dropped down a little bit — I could set that sometimes — and lost a little bit of our focus, which is what we talked about coming into this. I’m a pretty hardcore coach, and demand excellence. Even if we’re beating someone, I still want to see us play the game well.”
The Warriors next play Friday night at Yakima, and then return home to host Columbia Basin the following afternoon.
Article by Hector del Castillo of the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin
Photo by Greg Lehman of the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin
