EUGENE, Ore. – Despite a 3-1 (25-17, 16-25, 25-21, 25-19) loss to Bushnell University on Saturday, Warrior Volleyball still has reason to celebrate. LC State is postseason bound for the second straight season after clinching the No. 6 seed in the Cascade Conference Championship, presented by U.S. Bank. The tournament will be played next weekend in La Grande, Ore., with No. 1 Eastern Oregon as the top seed.
The Warriors will face third-seeded (RV) Southern Oregon in a quarterfinal matchup on Nov. 11 at 9 a.m. A full preview will be available on Thursday.
"We are excited to be heading back to the postseason for the second straight year," Head Coach
Shaun Pohlman said. "It's a huge accomplishment for this team and it says a lot about our players' commitment to building this program."
Bushnell, who clinched the No. 4 seed in the tournament, came out hot against the Warriors with the first three points of the match. A kill by
Cassidy Nelson snapped the Beacon run, but Bushnell surged ahead 8-3. A kill by
Channa Hart sparked a run of four, featuring an ace by
Grecia Ung Enriquez and kill by Nelson, to bring LC within one at 8-7. An 11-3 rally by the Beacons grew the deficit to 19-10 before the set finished with Bushnell ahead 25-17.
The Warriors turned things around in the second frame, starting with back-to-back kills by Nelson. Two straight kills by Ung Enriquez and
Hallie Seaman put LC lead to 6-1, and a kill by Ung Enriquez and a pair of blocks by
Carli Berntson, Seaman and Ung Enriquez made it a 10-2 difference. Ung Enriquez sparked a four-point stretch, aided by two kills by Nelson and an ace by Ung Enriquez, to give LC a commanding 14-3 lead.
Nelson, Berntson and
Lisi Langi added kills down the stretch to grow the cushion to 20-11, and an ace by
Jennah Carpenter and kill by Ung Enriquez closed out the set 25-16.
Bushnell regained its footing in the third frame and jumped ahead 4-2. Back-to-back kills by Ung Enriquez tied things up 4-4, and Bushnell errors and a kill by
Jada Wyms kept things knotted 9-9. The teams continued the back-and-forth until the Beacons rattled off four straight points to take a 16-12 lead.
A block by Seaman and kills by Ung Enriquez kept the Warriors within one at 17-16. Bushnell went on a run to push the margin to 23-18 before ending the set 25-21.
LC State responded with a 6-2 opening run in the fourth. A block by Hart and Langi was followed by an ace by Nelson to made it 3-0, and the Warriors scored three more on a kill by Ung Enriquez, block by Langi and Seaman and a kill by Langi. Bushnell picked up the pace with eight straight points to take a 10-6 lead. The Warriors stayed within four before a
Kenzie Dean service ace and a kill by Ung Enriquez brought the score to 18-16, but LC could not get closer and fell 25-19.
Ung Enriquez led the match with 16 kills and Nelson added 13.
Esther Kailiponi dished out 15 assists and Dean collected 18 digs.
UP NEXT
The Warriors will open postseason play on Friday against SOU in La Grande.
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