PORTLAND, Ore. --- Junior outside hitter Kati Hronek hammered home a career-high 23 kills on a .553 hitting percentage as the Portland Pilots defeated the Gonzaga Bulldogs in a five set thriller (25-22, 29-27, 14-25, 22-25, 15-9) Saturday afternoon at the Chiles Center. 568 fans, the third highest mark in school history, watched the Pilots’ victory in the annual “Dig Pink” match.

 

Portland (9-14, 2-5 WCC) opened the fifth set with a 5-3 lead but Gonzaga notched back-to-back points to tie it. The Bulldogs (2-21, 0-7 WCC) almost took the momentum from the Pilots with a third consecutive point as Kristina Lavrisha tapped the ball over a pair of Pilot blockers. Sophomore middle blocker Ariel Usher showed she has fully recovered from an ankle injury suffered two weeks ago with a pancake save to keep the ball alive as sophomore outside hitter Kate Bostwick finished the point to capture the momentum back for Portland. Bostwick steered the Pilots the rest of the way with five kills to give Portland the deciding set.

 

The Pilots improve to 3-2 in matches going five sets while Gonzaga falls to 1-5 in such matches.

 

Before Bostwick took over for the Pilots in the fifth, it was Hronek supplying a steady dose of kills for Portland. She secured the first set with a vicious kill into the back row for her sixth of the set. Portland led 18-12 at one point but Gonzaga, in what would become a theme of the afternoon, rallied to close the gap to 20-19 before the Pilots bore down to capture the set.

 

After the teams traded points for much of the second set, the Bulldogs pulled away with a 23-20 advantage, forcing the Pilots up against the wall. Behind an energetic crowd, Portland forced Gonzaga to set point three times before finishing the Bulldogs on the fourth attempt. It was Hronek once again with six kills in the set.

 

“That is the kind of match I love to have played at the Chiles Center. It was a fantastic crowd, especially considering coming off of fall break,” Portland head coach Joe Houck excitedly added after the match. “Just an electric crowd that kept us in it and I’m hoping that this is the future of Pilot volleyball.

 

The Chiles Center was spotted with pink as the third largest crowd in school history wore pink to support breast cancer awareness as part of a nationwide campaign through the Side-Out foundation. All eight WCC teams will be hosting a “Dig Pink” event as October is Breast Cancer Awareness month.

 

Gonzaga rebounded strong in the third set, jumping out to a 7-0 lead coming out of the break. Kelsey Bashaw led the Bulldogs with five kills and two blocks as Gonzaga cruised to a 25-14 set victory to trim the margin to 2-1. Bashaw finished the match with 17 kills on a .412 hitting percentage with six blocks.

 

Bostwick and sophomore setter Madison Smith both posted double-doubles. Bostwick had 14 kills on 10 digs while Smith dished out 50 assists on 11 digs. Laura Day had 14 digs and 12 kills for the Bulldogs to compliment five service aces.

 

With the win, the Pilots conclude the first half of WCC play with the same conference win total as last year. Portland has seven matches to win three conference matches for the first time since 2002 and they are just one win shy of winning 10 matches for the first time since 2004.

 

Portland continues the home stand next weekend by hosting San Diego and St. Mary’s. The Toreros arrive first, playing Thursday, Oct. 28 at 7 PM. St. Mary’s then comes to town on Saturday, Oct. 30., at 1 PM. Both teams have received votes in the AVCA coaches poll this season, with San Diego entering this past week ranked no. 19.