Maria Clemens |
The Dons take three close games from the Pilots 30-28, 30-28, 30-27
PORTLAND, Ore. --- The San Francisco Dons won three close games to sweep the Portland Pilots 3-0 in a West Coast Conference volleyball match Thursday night at the Chiles Center. The Dons won 30-28, 30-28 and 30-27 to claim the victory.
The loss drops Portland’s record to 8-18 (1-12 WCC), while the Dons improve to 21-8 (6-7 WCC).
Freshman Maria Clemens led the Portland attack with 12 kills, while sophomore Jennifer Sheedy recorded 11 and junior Nicole Thometz had 10. Clemens added 13 digs for the double-double. Junior Kara Pein had a match-high 39 assists.
Senior Murphy McClenahan made 22 digs giving her 415 this season. That places her tenth on UP’s all-time single season digs list.
Kristin Hasselberg had 16 kills to lead the Dons, while Alix Gombos had 12. Haley Carroll recorded a team-high 16 digs and Jamie Kartchner had 22 assists. Darcy Carroll dished out 19 assists.
The first game was evenly played with the Pilots leading late. After an 11-11 tie, Portland rattled off 15 of the next 24 points to build a six-point advantage at 26-20. Clemens capped the run with kill. San Francisco then gained the momentum to tie the game. Hasselberg and Carly Babin combined on a block to knot the game at 28-28. USF then took the game after a Hasselberg kill and a service ace by Haley Carroll.
The second game was similar to the first as neither team was able to gain much of an advantage. Down 18-22, Portland followed a timeout by scoring five out of six points to tie the game at 23-23. Clemens followed a block assist from Pein and sophomore Ashley Grayson with a kill to tie the game. A few plays later, Pein evened the score again at 27-27 with a service ace. USF would take three of the final four points en route to the win.
In the third game, the Pilots took a 24-18 lead, only to have the Dons battle back yet again. After Clemens recorded a kill to give Portland the six-point lead, USF tied it at 25-25. The Dons then took the lead after a serve from Tiffany Woo hit the top of the net and barely rolled over for the ace. An emphatic kill from UP sophomore K.C. Fox tied the game at 26-26, but USF outscored Portland 4-1 the rest of the way to win the match.
The Pilots conclude the regular season with a home match against the Saint Mary’s Gaels at the Chiles Center at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. Portland will honor its lone senior, Murphy McClenahan, with a pre-game ceremony.
