No. 24 GCU Wins Fifth Straight, 19 of last 20

Tuesday, September 4

Antelope Gymnasium

6 p.m.

Grand Canyon

Western New Mexico

9/4/2012 9:13:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

No. 24 Grand Canyon won its fifth straight, and 19 of its last 20 over two seasons, with a convincing 3-0 win over visiting Western New Mexico at Antelope Gymnasium Tuesday.

GCU (5-0) won by set scores of 25-15, 25-22, 25-12. The Antelopes hit .380 as a team, led by sophomore Hayleigh Friemoth with nine kills. Senior setter Kristen Preach had 35 assists and sophomore libero Mackenzie Phelps tallied 15 digs.

The Antelopes ended the 2011 regular season with a school-record 14-match winning streak. It was halted by a loss to UC San Diego in the quarterfinals of the NCAA West Regional.

Middle hitters Shelby Taylor and Lanie Muys each had eight kills on 13 swings with only one error (.538). The Antelopes had just eight hitting errors in 100 attempts, totaling 46 kills. Muys also had six digs, three service aces and three blocks, including one solo.

Friemoth added seven digs. Preach had three total blocks, six digs and four kills. Megan Davis and Janae Giles each had six kills.

“Our offense, as a whole, executed our gameplan,” said GCU coach Kris Naber. “We found holes in their defense and went after them effectively on the block.

The Antelopes hit .593 in the opening set, getting 16 kills on 27 tries with only one error. Seven of the team’s eight hitting errors came in the second set.

“The second game, we relaxed a little, but overall I thought we showed consistency,” said Naber. “Anytime you hit .380 as a team, you’re going to win some ballgames.”

Friemoth hit .421 on 19 attempts, with just one mistake.

GCU helped hold WNMU to a .136 hitting percentage, with a low of .108 in the third set.

The Antelopes play five matches in three days at the Holiday Inn Crossroads Classic in Grand Junction, Colo. They open with host Colorado Mesa Thursday.

GCU 3, WNMU 0