HONOLULU, Hawai'i - Azusa Pacific (6-6, 3-1 PacWest) took No. 12 Chaminade to four sets on Saturday night, eventually falling by a 3-1 score.
Annaka Jorgenson finished with a team-high nine kills, while
Kyra Palmbush tallied seven kills on 17 attempts for a .353 hitting percentage.
Brooke Bunker had 16 assists, and
Paige Johnstone led the Cougars with 11 digs.
How It Happened: After dropping the first set by a 25-15 score, the Cougars fought back to tie the match at 1-1 with a 25-19 second set victory. With Chaminade up 10-8 in the second, Azusa Pacific won eight of the next 10 points to jump out to a 16-12 lead. Still up 17-15, the Cougars went on another run to grab full control of the set, scoring six of seven points for a 22-16 lead, which was an advantage that remained at four or more for the rest of the set.
Other than a 1-0 lead to start the third set, the Silverswords were in front for the rest of the set. While the Cougars would pull within two points on several occasions, Chaminade would keep the advantage out of reach from the visitors. Up 20-17 late in the set, the Silverswords secured the 2-1 match lead by winning five of the next six points.
Looking to force a fifth set, the Cougars went up 13-10 in the fourth. However, Chaminade would go on an 8-2 run to grab an 18-14 advantage. Azusa Pacific would not go down quietly, pulling within one point late at 22-21, and then again at 23-22, but back-to-back kills for Chaminade secured the 25-22 fourth set victory to clinch the match.
By the Numbers: The Cougars had a hard time finding offensive consistency in the match, as they posted hitting percentages of .083 and .069 in the first and third set, and percentages of .259 and .293 in the second and fourth set. Overall, the Cougars finished the match at .190 with 39 kills on 121 attempts and 16 errors. Chaminade had 10 service aces in the match, which is the second most by a Cougar opponent this season.
Up Next: The Cougars will look to leave the islands with a winning record tomorrow, as they wrap up the three day trip at Hawai'i Hilo. First serve for tomorrow's match is set for 3:00 pm local time (6:00 pm PT). Postgame statistics for tomorrow's match will be posted following the conclusion of the contest, while the match recap will be posted to APUCougars.com on Monday.
