Sophomores Lead Sweep Of Drake

Friday, September 13

Omaha, NE

1:30 PM

University of Washington

5-1

Drake

5-3

Washington

Drake

September 13, 2019 | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score PDF

By: UW Athletic Communications

Note: Stats are now complete and accurate

OMAHA, Neb. – All five members of UW's 2018 freshman class, now four sophomores and one redshirt freshman, saw the court together today, leading the Huskies to a 3-0 win over Drake in the first match of the Bluejay Invitational, hosted by Creighton at D.J. Sokol Arena. Sophomores Claire Hoffman and Shannon Crenshaw both had double-figure kill total in the 25-14, 30-28, 25-19 win.

The five second year Huskies -- Hoffman, Crenshaw, Marin Grote, Dani Cole, and Ella May Powell -- all got the start today, along with seniors Avie Niece and Shayne McPherson. It was the first career start for Cole.

Hoffman led the squad with 14 kills today and Crenshaw tied her career-high with 12 and added 15 digs for her first career double-double. Grote had six kills and three blocks, while Cole had career-highs in just her second match with four kills and six blocks. Powell ran an efficient offense with 40 assists adding 10 digs and putting down four kills.

"Nice to see our entire sophomore class out there playing for an extended period of time and having to manage all parts of the game," said Head Coach Keegan Cook. "I thought it was really important for their growth both this season and for the future, being able to carry that volume for that period of time. The second set got away from us a little bit, but they won it, and refocused in the third set."

Senior Avie Niece also helped the sophomores along with nine kills, hitting .389, and a team-high seven blocks. She also served up the first two aces of her career in the first set, and had a career-high five digs. Many of Niece's blocks came alongside Cole.

"Those are important minutes for Dani to give her the confidence to do what she's great at: defending," said Cook. "She also took a couple great swings as well. We want to continue to try and give her the opportunity to learn in that environment."

As a team the Huskies hit .283 today and held Drake to a .127 mark. Washington served five aces and gave up only one, but did miss 10 serves. UW had a 10.5 to 5.0 edge in blocks and out-dug the Bulldogs, 51-43.

UP NEXT: Washington plays its only double-header of the season tomorrow, first taking on Nebraska-Omaha at 10 a.m. Central (8 a.m. Pacific) and then facing the host and 17th-ranked Creighton Bluejays at 7:30 p.m. Central (5:30 p.m. Pacific). Both matches will be live streamed on Creighton's home page.

SET 1: Drake scored the first point but then Claire Hoffman got UW's first kill and followed with an ace. Avie Niece served up the first two aces of her career for a 6-2 Husky lead. Another tough serve from Niece was overpassed and Dani Cole got her first kill off of that for 8-2. Marin Grote's first kill after a Niece dig made it 10-2 Dawgs and Drake took timeout. Maria Bogomolova subbed in and had her first kill for a 14-5 lead. A Hoffman kill from the left and a block for Niece and Cole made it 18-8 Dawgs and forced the final Drake timeout. A hard swing up the right sideline from Cole and a Crenshaw shot through the block made it set point and Drake served one out to end it, 25-14.

The Huskies hit .310 in the set while Drake hit .167. Hoffman had five kills and Crenshaw had four on six swings without an error to hit .667.

SET 2: Hoffman sent an ace into the seam and Crenshaw tooled the block on the left for a 4-3 Husky lead in the second set. Drake edged out to a two point lead at 6-8 but Grote put away a slide in serve-receive to respond. Hoffman tied it up at 9-9 with two in a row from the left. Drake went back on top with a 3-0 run for 9-12, snapped by Niece rolling a kill over the block. Cole and Niece teamed up for a roof for 12-14. Hoffman capped a long rally with a back row kill set by Powell to tie it at 16-16 and Drake took time. Out of the break, Crenshaw put UW up with a kill off the block touch for 17-16. Powell attacked on two for her first kill and a 19-18 lead. Another block for Cole and Niece ended a lengthy rally for 21-20 Dawgs and Drake used its last timeout. UW missed serve out of the break and then hit one long as Drake went back up one. Niece responded with a hammered quick kill, and then a Drake error made it 23-22 Huskies. A service error gave UW set point at 24-23 but Drake saved it with a kill. A Husky error gave Drake a set point chance, but Grote saved it with a kill. A Drake miss gave UW a second chance at 26-25, but Drake stayed alive with a long rally win. Powell dumped for a third UW chance but the Huskies served long. Drake went back on top again, with Hoffman putting one down to stave off that set point chance. Powell served an ace to get UW a fourth try at 29-28. The fourth time was the charm, as Niece and Cole got a block to finish it off, 30-28.

The Huskies hit .286 in the set with Drake at .135. Hoffman delivered seven kills in the set and the Huskies got five blocks from the Niece-Cole combo.

SET 3: Niece carried the load on offense early in the set with a couple kills and Crenshaw connected with Powell for a pair as the teams were tied at 7-7. Another successful dump from Powell was followed by Niece tooling the block on a slide, and Crenshaw finishing from the back row for 10-8 and a Drake timeout. Cole fired crosscourt from the left and two more Crenshaw kills extended the lead to 16-11. Grote and Crenshaw built a roof for a fourth-straight point at 17-11. Drake rallied with three straight but Grote tipped over and down for 18-14. Powell found Hoffman for a big swing and a 21-16 lead. A kill for Niece along with a block assist from Niece and Hoffman got the Dawgs to match point at 24-18, and one more from Powell to Niece in the middle ended it, 25-19.

Washington was led by Niece who had five kills in the third set, hitting .444, while Crenshaw also had five kills and hit .400. As a team UW hit .245 and held Drake to .071. Powell had 16 assists in the third set alone.