Volleyball

For those who like their competition with a little spike to it, the West Spiketacular is going on this weekend at the site of the State Championship Tournament in November. Twenty teams from across Alaska will compete. The Spiketacular, gives teams a mid-season glimpse of where they stand against programs outside their own region. “This tournament is amazing and we've been coming for a while, and it's just a nice way to get off of Kodiak. We don't have other teams to play expect our own. It's exciting to come here and play against all these great teams,” said Samantha Oliver, Kodiak senior.

The University of Alaska Anchorage volleyball team took a hit on the road Saturday night, dropping three games in a row to Central Washington. The loss officially eliminates the defending Great Northwest Athletic Conference champs from this year’s title race. The Seawolves need a strong finish in their two home games next week in order to have a chance at qualifying for the NCAA tournament. Contact Charlie Sokaitis at csokaitis@ktuu.com

In Friday’s Cook Inlet Conference volleyball regular-season finale, South was looking to complete a 14-game undefeated streak in league play after hosting Dimond. For the match’s opening serve, the Wolverines went to Shelby Stoner, who quickly put South on the board. Lindsey Logan also chipped in during the first game, helping South win tight rallies. The Wolverines ultimately won in three games, ensuring that they'll be the favorite at regionals. Contact Kevin Wells at kwells@ktuu.

Defending state 4A volleyball champion Dimond showed its colors Thursday on a visit to Cook Inlet Conference rival Service. The Cougars’ four each freshmen and sophomores were poised early, with Genny Boots giving Service an initial 9-1 run. The cornered Lynx, however, rallied from 17-9 down in the first game, and Abby Pacolt floored it, helping to turn the tide for a 26-24 Dimond win. Dimond would go on to take the match in three...

Kimya Jafroudi delivered six of the Seawolves' 14 aces as the UAA volleyball team shook off an opening game loss to St. Martin's to knock off the Saints in four games, 23-25, 25-13, 25-18, 25-15.  The Seawolves improve to 13 and 5 overall and 8 and 2 in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, tied for second place. Katelynn Zanders led a balanced attack with 17 kills, while fellow freshmen Julia Mackey and Sarah Johnson contributed 12 and 10 kills, respectively.  Jodi Huddleston added 10 kills.

The Cook Inlet Conference volleyball season began Tuesday night, with defending state champion Dimond High School visiting West. In the opening game, Kristi Lauwers put the ball down in West territory as Dimond claimed the first game, 25-16. The Eagles got a rise out of the crowd as short spiker Kirsten Leifi collected kills on the floor, but ultimately the Lynx won in 3. South, Chugiak and Eagle River are also 1-0. Contact John Carpenter at jcarpenter@ktuu.com

The University of Alaska Anchorage’s volleyball team’s upset defeat of Western Washington University put the Seawolves back into the race for the GNAC title -- an opportunity that was apparently crushed Thursday. A three-game loss at the hands of 15th-ranked Seattle Pacific, 25-23, 25-23, 25-14, drove the Seawolves back to .500 in conference. Robyn Burton enjoyed a sensational match with 11 kills and an attack percentage of .588, but UAA had a tough time finishing out games, dropping five straight points near the end of the second game.

The Seawolf volleyball team has dropped out of the Division II top 25. The Demotion comes after UAA had mixed results on an eight-match road trip. Chris Green and company played three top 15 opponents and another returning NCAA Tournament squad during that stretch and finished 4-4. The Seawolves also played the entire trip minus star middle blocker Cortney Lundberg. The senior is still recovering from an ankle injury. UAA still feels good about its long-term chances, especially should Lundberg return healthy.

There’s some discontent about the University of Alaska Anchorage volleyball sqaud's performance this week, with the Seawolves having lost three of their last four games, leaving them 6 and 5 overall and 1 and 2 in conference play. To put that showing in perspective, though, it’s not all that different from last year's record at this point. The eventual league champions stood only 8 and 5, and also dropped the GNAC home opener. Then again, the 2009 Seawolves got hot and won 13 games straight.

Despite recent losses, the University of Alaska Anchorage volleyball team is still in position to make a return to the NCAA Division II playoffs. The Seawolves hang on to the No. 7 ranking in this week's regional poll, with the top eight teams earning NCAA bids. Selections for the regional, which will likely be held at California State-San Bernardino, come after this weekend's final regular-season matches. That said, UAA can ill afford a slipup against 2 and 20 St. Martin's in a Thursday home game.

The University of Alaska Anchorage has announced it's 2013 volleyball schedule.  Seawolves begin pre-season play August 24th with their annual Green & Gold Intrasquad match.  The team heads into regular season competition September 5th, with their annual season-opening tournament at the Wells Fargo Sports Complex. The Seawolves are scheduled to play 14 regular season home matches. Rival Seattle Pacific visits to kick off the Great Northwest Athletic Conference campaign on September 19th, and November highlights visits from Alaska Fairbanks and defending GNAC champion Western Washington.

ASAA Volleyball Mixed 6 Division--Semifinal Matches Noatak def. Elim 13-25, 27-25, 25-14, 25-22 Unalakleet def. Glacier View 25-21, 25-15, 25-15 Championship Match:  Unalakleet vs. Noatak, 4:30 Saturday   ASAA 2A Girls Volleyball Division--Semifinal Matches Craig def. Kenny Lake 25-17, 14-25, 25-17, 25-23 Dillingham def. Klawock 25-22, 19-25, 25-20, 19-25, 15-11 Championship Match: Craig vs. Dillingham,  6:30 Saturday...

ASAA Mixed 6 Volleyball Tournament Scores Quarterfinal Round--Thursday Elim Def. Emmonak 25-18, 25-18, 24-26, 25-14 Noatak def. Akiachak 25-16, 25-19, 25-9 Unalakleet def. Thorne Bay 25-8, 25-16, 25-18 Glacier View def. Alak 25-18, 23-25, 26-24, 25-4 Semifinals--Friday Elim vs. Noatak, 1:30 Unalakleet vs. Glacier View, 3:15   ASAA 2A Girls Volleyball Tournament Scores ...

Mt. Edgecumbe claimed its second straight state 3A volleyball championship with a four game win over Grace Christian 25-21, 13-25, 25-17, 25-22.  The Braves also defeated the Grizzlies in the 2011 finals. The 4A tournament took a dramatic turn as Dimond gave South its first loss of the tournament in the championship round, 25-16, 25-20, 25-22 to force a decisive tie-breaker game to 30 points.  The Lynx also won that final game, 30-27 to earn their fourth state championship in the last five years.  Dimond repeated the path it took to claim the Cook Inlet Conference title a week ago.  In that tournament, the Lynx also lost to the Wolverines in the finals of the winners bracket, only to claim the title in the championship round.

ASAA 3A Volleyball Tournament--Wasilla Sports Complex Friday's Losers Bracket Matches: Monroe def. Nikiski 25-17, 25-19, 25-20 Skyview def. Barrow 25-14, 25-23, 25-20 Monroe def. Valdez 23-25, 25-21, 25-23, 23-25, 15-8 Skyview def. Nome, 25-23, 26-24, 25-22 Barrow, Nikiski, Valdez, and Nome eliminated Friday's Winners Bracket Match: Mt. Edgecumbe def. Grace Christian, 25-22, 25-15, 25-19  ASAA 4A Volleyball Tournament--Wasilla Sports Complex Friday's Losers Bracket Matches: Palmer def. Kodiak 25-20, 25-22, 14-25, 21-25, 19-17 Soldotna def. West Valley 25-12, 25-15, 27-25 Juneau def. Soldotna 16-25, 25-22, 19-25, 25-21, 15-12 Palmer def. East 25-16, 25-27, 25-21, 25-16 Kodiak, West Valley, Soldotna, and East eliminated   Friday's Winners Bracket Match: South def. Dimond 25-22, 25-13, 25-17

The ASAA has announced the opening round matchups and times for the 3A and 4A state tournament this week at the Wasilla Sports Complex.  For the first time, the tournament is going to a double elimination format.  Mount Edgecumbe and South Anchorage are defending champions. State 4A Tournament-- Thursday's Opening Round West Valley vs. East, 10:00am Soldotna vs. South, 11:45am Juneau vs. Kodiak, 1:30pm Dimond vs. Palmer, 3:15pm Championship match 6:00 Saturday   State 3A Tournament-- Thursday's Opening Round Mt. Edgecumbe vs. Nikiski, 10:00am Nome vs. Monroe, 11:45am Valdez vs. Barrow, 1:30pm Skyview vs. Grace Christian, 3:15 Championship match 3:00 Saturday

The University of Alaska Anchorage volleyball team became just the latest Vikings victim Thursday night down in Bellingham Washington dropping three straight games to 17th ranked Western Washington University 25-16, 25-22, 25-23.  The sweep keeps Vikings impressive home streak alive WWU has yet to lose a single game, let alone a match, to a GNAC opponent on their own floor.  For the Seawolves freshman Katelynn Zanders was the top performing offensive...

Kimya Jafroudi delivered six of the Seawolves' 14 aces as the UAA volleyball team shook off an opening game loss to St. Martin's to knock off the Saints in four games, 23-25, 25-13, 25-18, 25-15.  The Seawolves improve to 13 and 5 overall and 8 and 2 in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, tied for second place. Katelynn Zanders led a balanced attack with 17 kills, while fellow freshmen Julia Mackey and Sarah Johnson contributed 12 and 10 kills, respectively.  Jodi Huddleston added 10 kills.

The UAA Volleyball team won its 16th straight home match over the course of the last two seasons to set an all-time school record as the Seawolves floored Simon Fraser, 25-10, 25-14, 25-17.  UAA improves to 10 and 4 overall, 5 and 1 in Great Northwest Athletic Conference action. Katelynn Zanders had a big night for the Seawolves, connecting on 17 kills and an attack percentage of .375.  Setter Kimya Jafroudi dished out 40 assists and served 10 straight points midway through the second game.