SPOKANE, Wash. – Whitworth University heads into this weekend's matches with a chance to clinch the 2021 Northwest Conference volleyball title with two victories, but the challenge is great. The Pirates will play at third place Puget Sound on Friday night (7:00 pm) and at second place Pacific Lutheran on Saturday (6:00 pm).
Check the Whitworth volleyball schedule for live links to this weekend's action.
Protect the Crew: Puget Sound and PLU both require masks at all indoor athletic events. Please plan accordingly.
The Pirates: Whitworth (17-2 overall, 12-0 NWC) completed season sweeps of visiting Linfield and Willamette last weekend.
The Pirates bounced back from a slow start to defeat Linfield 17-25, 25-11, 25-17, 25-17 on Friday night. Whitworth survived a season-low hitting percentage of .132 against the Wildcats with solid defense. The Pirates held Linfield to a hitting percentage of -0.044 and had nine team blocks. Maddie Lee had 16 kills, two service aces and three block assists for 19.5 points. Eva Millan finished with a match-high 19 digs, while Joelle Forbes had 20 of the team's 40 assists. Whitworth stretched its winning streak over Linfield to six matches.
Whitworth started fast against Willamette, then had to rally in the second and third sets before winning 25-16, 25-23, 25-23. The Pirates trailed 21-18 in the second set before finishing on a 7-2 run. They were down 23-19 in the third before closing on a 6-0 run. Forbes served the winning points in both rallies. Lee had ten kills, but much of the offense came through the middle as Cassidy Franklin and Kaity Barr had nine kills apiece. Barr added two service aces and two block assists for 12.0 points. Whitworth won its tenth in a row over Willamette.
Best Start Ever: The Whitworth volleyball team had never won its first 12 Northwest Conference games in a row. Until now. The previous best start to conference play came in 2002 when the Bucs won their first 11 matches before falling to Puget Sound in the 12th contest. The Pirates went on to finish 15-1 in the NWC that season. Whitworth has finished 15-1 in the NWC three times: 2002, 2005 and 2016.
NWC Stat Leaders: Whitworth leads the Northwest Conference in several statistical categories. Most notably, the Pirates lead the NWC and rank ninth in all of NCAA DIII in team blocks per set (2.26). They also rank first in the NWC in kills per set (12.73), assists per set (11.83), team hitting percentage (.212), opponents' hitting percentage (.109), and they are third in digs per set (17.14).
Individually, Lee is first in points per set (4.21) and in kills per set (3.64). Franklin is still first in hitting percentage (.354) and third in blocks per set (0.97). Barr is second in blocks per set (1.03) and third in hitting percentage (.323). Eva Millan is fourth in digs per set (4.94).
NWC Poll: Whitworth was picked first on eight out of nine ballots in the 2021 NWC preseason coaches poll. The Pirates had 64 points to outdistance PLU, who had the remaining first place vote and 56 points. Puget Sound was third in the poll (45 points), while Pacific (Ore.) was fourth (43 points). Coaches cannot vote for their own school.
The Coach: Kati Bodecker, 140-59 heading into her ninth season guiding the Pirates, is a three-time Northwest Conference Coach of the Year after leading Whitworth to four NWC championships in her first eight seasons. Bodecker has also directed the Pirates to four appearances in the NCAA Division III tournament (2014, 2015, 2016, 2019). In 2013 she coached the Bucs to a 15-13 record, becoming the first Whitworth volleyball coach to post a winning record in her first season since Margaret Campbell in 1990. She previously had been the head coach at Priest River High School, leading the Spartans to five state tournament appearances, including a runner-up finish in 2012. She was a four-year starter at the University of Idaho, helping lead the Vandals to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances as a sophomore and junior.
The Opponents: Puget Sound is 14-7 overall and 8-4 (third place) in the NWC. The Loggers earned a big 3-1 win over visiting Pacific Lutheran last Wednesday (10/20), but fell 3-1 at home to Pacific (Ore.) on Friday. Puget Sound leads the NWC in service aces per set (2.17), led by Jordan Holman's 0.64 aces per set individually. Holman also leads her squad in kills per set (2.64). Katherine Carley is second in the NWC in hitting percentage (.324) with averages of 2.05 kills and 0.74 blocks per set. Whitworth defeated Puget Sound 3-1 at home on October 1st as Maddie Lee had 17 kills and 19 digs, while Kaity Barr was in on six blocks and had three aces.
Pacific Lutheran University is 13-8 overall and 10-2 (second place) in the NWC heading into Friday's match against Whitman. The Lutes bounced back from their loss at Puget Sound with a dominating sweep at George Fox on Saturday. Emily Dulaney leads the NWC in assists per set (9.56), while Halle Hetzler leads the league in digs per set (5.62). McKenzie Pfeiffer leads the Lutes, and is third in the NWC, in kills per set (3.44). Whitworth played its best match of the season in a 3-0 sweep of visiting PLU on October 2nd, hitting a season-best .393. Barr had 10 kills and five blocks, while Lee had 12 kills.
Coming Up Next: Whitworth will travel to Whitman next Wednesday before finishing the regular season at home against Lewis & Clark on November 5th.
