UAA blocks Rockhurst rally for 3-1 victory

Fairbanks, Alaska (Sept. 13) - Freshman Emma Beck blasted 13 kills and junior Lee Ivakina had 12 kills and 11 digs Saturday to help the UAA volleyball team to a 25-20, 25-22, 26-28, 25-23 win over Rockhurst in the Denali State Bank Ice Block Classic at the Patty Center.

The Seawolves (9-1) also got a career-high-tying nine kills and seven total blocks from sophomore middle blocker Martina Riba in their non-conference finale.

The Hawks (4-3), from Kansas City, Missouri, got a match-high 15 kills from Alyssa MacDonald, but could not contain a late comeback by the Seawolves in the fourth set.

"We had to dig deep after a tough third-set loss, but our team really proved its overall resilience to make that comeback in the fourth," said UAA head coach Stacie Meisner, whose squad rallied from down 13-7 and 21-18 in the final frame. "We'll look to keep improving this week and hopefully take some of this momentum into the GNAC season."

After controlling the first set throughout, the Seawolves claimed a 17-11 lead in the second when Tia Allen smashed one of her 10 kills. The Great Lakes Valley Conference club would rally, however, and claim a 20-19 advantage on three straight kills. UAA answered with kills from Ivakina and Beck to regain a 24-22 edge, and junior Elena Hansen delivered an ace on set point for the 2-0 lead.

Rockhurst took a back-and-forth third set when Sarah Pyle's ace - one of only two allowed by the Seawolves - ended a string of 17 straight rallies with the score tied or within one point.

UAA's final surge in the fourth set came when Ivakina, Beck and Ivakina again connected on consecutive kills to knot it 21-21 and force a Rockhurst timeout. Tied at 23-23, Allen found the middle of the court for her final kill, and Bella Burney clinched the win when her attack ricocheted high off the tape and off the Hawks blocker before hitting the court.

Senior libero Madison Galloway had 11 digs and UAA got 39 assists from the setter combo of sophomore Hannah Trotter and freshman Johana Malikova. Hansen and Riba each tallied three aces.

The Seawolves begin the Great Northwest Athletic Conference season Thursday (6 p.m. ADT) at longtime rival Seattle Pacific. Find links to live video ($) and stats at GoSeawolves.com.