The College of the Rockies Avalanche women’s volleyball squad (2-6) did its best to keep pace in the tight PACWEST race this past weekend, battling to a hard-fought split with the University of the Fraser Valley Cascades (3-7).
The Cascades showed no signs of sluggishness after making the trek to Cranbrook fro the Lower Mainland, claiming a 3-1 victory (14-25, 25-21, 25-20, 25-18) to open the weekend Friday night.
Cascades outsider hitter Kelly Robertson was lethal in the win, claiming 13 kills and throwing up three blocks to boost her club.
On the other side of the net, outsider hitter Kelsey Thompson landed an impressive 18 kills to lead the attack for the Lady Avs.
Middle blocker Kennedy Koop played a vital role all weekend, earning Avalanche Athlete of the Week honours.
Friday, the 5-foot-11 first-year from Niverville, Man., scored five kills and six blocks, before working in three kills and four blocks Saturday afternoon as the Lady Avs rallied from Friday’s defeat for a 3-2 victory (25-19, 19-25, 25-11, 23-25, 15-13).
Saturday’s contest was a back-and-forth affair between the Lady Avs and Cascades, with the fifth and deciding set featuring a few nail-biting rallies before the hosts finally closed it out.
Heading into the final week of PACWEST play before the holiday break, the Lady Avs sit sixth in the congested conference standings.
They will look to make a push up the ladder this weekend as they visit the Vancouver Island University Mariners (8-2) Thursday and Friday, before closing out the semester against the Camosun College Chargers (7-3) Saturday and Sunday.
PACWEST Women’s Standings1) Vancouver Island University (8-2, 16 points)2) Capilano University (7-3, 14)3) Camosun College (7-3, 14)4) Douglas College (5-5, 10)5) University of the Fraser Valley (3-7, 6)6) College of the Rockies (2-6, 4)7) Columbia Bible College (2-8, 4)
