LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The Portland Pilots opened the Springhill Suites Invitational with their second sweep of the season, defeating Grambling State 3-0 this Friday morning at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces, New Mexico. The Pilots won in three sets, 25-11, 25-19, and 25-14.
 
Senior Shayla Hoeft led the match with 13 kills, along with a .455 hitting percentage and two total blocks. Freshman Jayde Harris notched her first 10-kill match of her career, grabbing 11 over the course of three sets.

"We did a nice job of executing, especially on first contacts and from the service line", said Assistant Coach Dylan Hamilton. "We're excited that we got an opportunity to play (most) of our bench, and they did a great job."

The Pilots (5-2) began the match with the lead jostling back and forth across the net, until a 7-2 Portland run made it 12-5 Pilots. They'd stay in front of the Tigers (1-5), as three different Pilots (Hoeft, Harris and junior Liz Reich) each had three or more kills to take the first set at 25-11.
 
The second set began much like the first, with both teams going back and forth until the Pilots took an early lead at 10-6 thanks to one of Reich's nine kills. Grambling State refused to allow Portland to continue their hot streak uninterrupted, cutting Portland's lead to as low as 15-10. The Pilots went on to close out the second mostly thanks to Harris's performance: she had six kills in the second alone, leading the Pilots to take the set at 25-19.   

Grambling State would come out with authority to begin the third set, gaining a 7-1 lead. Portland would immediately respond with an astounding 19-2 run, featuring five kills from Hoeft. The Pilots run would prove too much to comeback from, allowing them to take the third set at 25-14.
 
The Springhill Suites Invitational continues tonight with the Pilots taking on hosts New Mexico State at 5:00 p.m. PT, at the Pan American Center.