Yellowjackets Fall to No. 2 BYU-Hawaii in Conference Opener (Sept. 22, 2003)
Box Score
BILLINGS, MT – Second-ranked BYU-Hawaii swept
MSU Billings, 3-0 (30-12, 30-20, 30-21), in the Yellowjackets’ conference
opener Monday evening at Alterowitz Gymnasium. The Seasiders improved to
8-2 overall and 2-0 in the PacWest while the Jackets dropped to 3-7, 0-1.
The defending National Champion Seasiders were strong
from the beginning, slamming down 17 kills with just one error in the
first game for a team hitting percentage of .421. The Yellowjackets
stumbled out of the gate with seven kills and ten errors in the opening
game.
“They’re pretty tough,” said Yellowjacket coach Pa’ulasi
Matavao of the Seasiders. “Our kids were intimidated a little. We
started to come around the second game, but our setters are still learning
because they’ve missed time with injuries. I think we were just
outmatched. They had better ball control than we did. A team like that,
you almost have to catch them on an off night. For some of our kids, that
was the first time they’ve played against a top team like that.”
MSU Billings found more success in the second and
third games, but were overmatched by the Seasiders who feature a pair of
All-Americans. The Jackets were able to hit just .028 for the match while
BYU-Hawaii hit a combined .374.
“We started to do some good things,” said Matavao,
“but they’re National Champions, and they’re experienced and know what to
do when a team makes a run on them. They don’t make a lot of mistakes and
make you pay for yours.”
The Yellowjackets were led by Katrina
Dahlgren’s (Sr., Missoula, MT) seven kills. Olivia Munro (Jr., Toronto, Ontario) had six kills and eight digs. Kari Jones (Jr.,
Hermiston, OR) added five kills while Jessica Bratton (Fr., Casper, WY) led the Yellowjacket defense with nine digs.
The Seasiders were paced by Yu Chuan Weng’s 13 kills
and 11 digs. Chun Yi Lin and Ashley Moeai each added 11 kills.
The Yellowjackets and Seasiders will play again
Tuesday night in a non-conference match. Start time is set for 7:00 p.m.
at Alterowitz Gymnasium. |
