Box Score
SALEM, Ore. - Kelcy Joynt, stepping up with the
season-ending injury loss of All-American teammate Beth Hanna,
pounded 28 kills Friday night to lift Pacific Lutheran over host
Willamette in a thrilling five-set Northwest Conference match at
Cone Field House.
The Lutes improved their conference record to 15-0 and their
overall mark to 19-6, rallying to defeat the Bearcats 19-25, 25-14,
20-25, 25-23, 15-9. The win was the 28th consecutive for Pacific
Lutheran over the past two seasons.
Joynt, who herself missed the end of both the 2007 and 2008
seasons because of knee injuries, was virtually unstoppable by the
Bearcats, in particular when the Lutes most needed her. The 5-9
senior middle blocker from Wasilla, Alaska, recorded eight
kills in the second set to get her team even at one set
apiece, and she notched six of her kills with no errors on 10 swins
in the final set. Joynt finished the match with 28 kills and seven
errors on 61 attempts, a .344 attack percentage. She added a
team-high 19 digs, as well as contributing four block assists for
the nation's 15th-ranked Division III team.
Kelsie Moore, a sophomore outside hitter, added 14 kills and 13
digs for the Lutes, who prepare for next week's Division III
postseason tournament without Hanna, a junior outside hitter who is
the two-time defending NWC Player of the Year. Sarah Beaver notched
48 assists, Erin Bremond had nine kills and three block assists and
Katy Tauscher added five kills and four block assists for the
winners.
Jessie McGraw had 20 kills and Brigit Miller 47 assists for the
Bearcats, now 7-8 in the conference and 10-13 overall this season.
Willamette won the opening set by hitting an impressive .387 to
just .147 for the Lutes. In the second set, Joynt turned the tide
with her eight kills and just one error on 13 attempts.
In the third set, both Joynt and Moore contributed five kills, but
Willamette regained the lead, two sets to one.
Joynt had five more kills, Bremond added four and Beaver had 12
assists in the crucial fourth set, but it was the defense that
turned the tide. Joynt, Moore, Bremond and Tauscher each had a pair
of block assists as the Lutes hung on to take the match to a
deciding fifth set. That's where Joynt took over, blitzing the
Bearcats with her six kills and .600 attack percentage.
Pacific Lutheran closes out the 2009 regular season schedule
against Lewis & Clark in Portland at 7 p.m. Saturday. PLU,
winner of five of the last six conference titles, finds out early
Monday morning if it will host the Division III West Region
tournament or travel to either Colorado or California.
- PLU -
