Uaa

The UAA volleyball team was officially eliminated from the title race in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference and could have a tougher time earning a spot in the postseason playoffs after being swept 25-20, 25-20, 25-13 by Central Washington at Nicholson Pavilion in Ellensburg, Wash., on Saturday.

The loss could cost the Seawolves their No. 7 ranking in the West Region rankings, which will determine which eight teams make the playoffs. New rankings come out Monday, and whether UAA remains in the top eight will depend on how other teams in the region fared during the week.

The Seawolves had won four straight matches and eight of their last nine coming into Saturday's match but ran into a team that's tough to beat at home. Central Washington has lost two matches at home this season, one to first-place Seattle Pacific and one to second-place Western Washington.

Despite taking an early lead in the first set, the Seawolves (16-8 overall, 11-5 GNAC) fell victim to a hard-charging Central team that was led by 11 kills apiece from outside hitters Kady Try and Meg Ryan.

The Wildcats (12-9, 10-6) closed the first and second sets with impressive runs and then took a 9-1 lead in the third set to all but seal the win. They are just the second team to sweep UAA this season.

Jackie Matthisen managed 10 kills for the Seawolves and libero Quincy Haught led the defense with eight digs. Robyn Burton and Marie Borowikow each added six kills.


The Seawolves struggled to put together a hitting attack and also failed to put their usually effective block to good use. They committed 25 hitting errors for a .041 attack percentage and managed only three blocks to Central's 10.

UAA wraps up the regular season this week with a pair of home matches that are pretty much must-wins if the Seawolves hope to make the playoffs. They meet last-place Saint Martin's on Thursday and Western Oregon on Saturday. Western Oregon beat the Seawolves in September's season opener and is currently tied for third place in the conference with UAA.

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