Box Score

LMU hit .368 in a sweep over Portland on Saturday afternoon, as the Lions (12-6, 3-3 WCC) earned the victory over the Pilots (11-7, 1-5 WCC) by scores of 25-21, 25-10, 25-19 from the Chiles Center in Portland, Ore.

Sophomore Sarah Sponcil led all players with 17 kills on 38 swings for a .368 hitting percentage. The native of Phoenix, Ariz. also had four block assists to help LMU to nine total team blocks. Rachelle Suaava had a solid all-around match for the Lions, teaming 12 kills with an ace and eight block assists. Suaava posted the 12 kills on 22 errorless attacks to finish with a .545 hitting percentage. Setter Hannah Tedrow set the attack to the impressive clip, dishing out 31 assists to accompany 18 digs and four block assists for a double-double.

The Lions took a close opening set, 25-21, after playing even to 21 in the first. A Hannah Troutman kill for Portland evened the score at 21, but Sponcil connected for her fourth kill in eight swings in the first to begin a four-point run to victory for the Lions. Avery Bush contributed one of three Lion first-set aces for point 23 before Suaava teamed with Tedrow and Sponcil on back-to-back blocks to finish off the period. The Lions hit .314 in the first set, receiving five kills from Jamie Lea, the four from Sponcil, and three from Suaava. Suaava also had four blocks, helping LMU to five as a team.

LMU ran away with the second set, claiming a commanding 2-0 lead in the match score. LMU hit .448 behind five kills on seven swings from Suaava en route to earning a 25-10 victory. A kill from Lea handed LMU an early 8-3 lead before she pushed LMU to 10-4 on another swing. Leading 12-8, LMU won three straight points, including one on a kill from Sponcil, to move to 15-8. A Lion service error ended that run, but LMU won each of the next six points, including a pair on kills from Sponcil, to extend the lead to 21-9. A Portland block once again ended the run, but LMU accelerated once more to the victory, winning the final four points of the set, capped by a pair of Suaava kills. LMU closed the second on a 13-2 run headed into the intermission.

Despite getting off to a slow start and trailing 4-0 early, LMU quickly drew back even at 5-5 on a kill from Sponcil in the third. Still tied at 11, LMU won three straight points, including two on Sponcil kills, to take a 14-11 lead it and force a Pilot timeout. The lead stretched to five at 18-13 on a Suaava kill, and LMU reached 20 points at 20-16 on a kill from Amber Mirabello. Suaava found the floor for the final time on Saturday to push the match to match-point at 24-18 before Sponcil fittingly put the match away two points later with her 17th kill of the afternoon, including her 10th in the final frame.

The Lions will return home on Thursday to host San Francisco in WCC play at 7 p.m.