SALT LAKE CITY — Westminster volleyball closed its season in style on Senior Day, beating Black Hills State 3-1 (25-15, 19-25, 25-16, 25-18) Saturday at Behnken Field House. The Griffins out-hit Black Hills State .252 to .102 and out-blocked them 10.0 to 4.0 in a match that featured 15 ties and seven lead changes.
GAME BREAKDOWN
Set One
Westminster never trailed in the opening set. Ava Livolsi served an ace and Alie Coleman had two blocks during a 5-0 run from 1-1 to 6-1. The Griffins then closed the set on a 10-0 run from 15-15 to 25-15, with Apiline White serving the final nine points, including two aces. White finished the set with three aces. Jocelyn Grieser hit .667 on two kills, Kanoe Haneberg hit .429 with three kills and added a block assist, and Coleman had two kills, two solo blocks and a block assist for 4.5 points. Tiia Heikkinen had six assists and Katelyn Eichert had three. Livolsi had eight digs and went 6-for-6 from the service line. Westminster hit .290 in the set, with 11 kills, four aces and 17 digs.
Set Two
Three straight White kills put Westminster up 5-2 early in the second set, and White finished with six kills on .400 hitting. Livolsi passed nine balls without a reception error, had five digs and two assists, and served an ace. Eichert also served an ace and had three assists. Kyra Mahler and Coleman each added a solo block, and Westminster passed at a .952 clip as a team in the set.
Set Three
Westminster took control with a 13-0 run from 11-13 to 24-13, powered by Heikkinen's serve: 12 straight points, including four aces. Elsa Gilmore had three kills and a block in the run, Mahler and Grieser each added a kill, and the Griffins took the lead for good at 14-13 and led by as many as 11. Heikkinen went 13-for-13 from the service line and had six assists, Gilmore had three kills and a solo block for 4.0 points, and Mahler had two kills and a solo block. Coleman and Haneberg each added a solo block, giving the Griffins four solo blocks in the set. White had three kills, Nora Elliot had three assists, Livolsi had eight digs, and Isabella Deantoni passed five balls without a reception error.
Set Four
Westminster hit .417 in the fourth set, with 20 kills on 36 attempts, and took the lead for good at 9-8 on the way to the win. A 4-0 run from 6-8 to 10-8 got it started. A 5-0 run from 18-17 to 23-17 put it away, with kills from Grieser, Haneberg, Coleman and Haneberg again and Coleman serving four straight points. Grieser had five kills on .500 hitting, including the match-ending kill, and Gilmore had three kills on .750 hitting. Haneberg had three kills on .500 hitting, Coleman had three kills and went 7-for-7 from the service line, White had four kills, and Mahler had two kills on .500 hitting. Elliot and Heikkinen each had eight assists, and Livolsi had eight digs and passed seven balls without a reception error.
GRIFFIN PERFORMANCES
White led Westminster with 14 kills, three aces and eight digs for a match-high 17.0 points, hitting .323. Grieser had 10 kills on .364 hitting, Gilmore had nine kills and a solo block, and Coleman had six kills, a match-high four solo blocks and a block assist for 10.5 points. Haneberg had six kills, a solo block and a block assist, and Mahler had five kills with no errors (.385) and three solo blocks.
Heikkinen had a match-high 22 assists, a match-high four aces and eight digs. Elliot had 12 assists and six digs, and Eichert had six assists, a kill and an ace. Libero Livolsi had a match-high 29 digs, three assists and two aces, went 17-for-17 from the service line and passed at a .958 clip. Mele Peaua added five digs.
As a team, Westminster finished with 51 kills, 45 assists, 10 aces and 68 digs, with 10.0 team blocks (nine solo, two assists).
The Griffins will look to build off this victory during the offseason.
