By: Burke De Boer
Sports Editor

A long road trip saw Wolves volleyball take on Universities of Alaska at Anchorage and Fairbanks. Top ten-ranked Anchorage beat the Wolves, but they returned to Monmouth with a win after besting Fairbanks 3-1.

The Wolves put up some solid plays against Anchorage, out digging them 44-41. Senior Christie Colasurdo led on defense, racking up 19 of the digs. But these 44 digs were the result of a game played on the defense. Anchorage was all around too tough and with the win they advanced to a 17-1 record on the season.

The match against Fairbanks opened with a loss in the close first set, 22-25. The Wolves then rattled off a dominant performance the rest of the match and took three sets in a row.

“Our mentality really changed,” Colasurdo said after the game. “We decided we wanted to dictate the game and control what happened to our side and we did just that. We came out much more aggressive and started playing to win, and it worked.”

Alisha Bettinson posted yet another double-double on the season in the game against Fairbanks, racking up 15 kills and 12 digs. Colasurdo had 21 digs, and Sydney Blankinship put up 12 kills and a block. The team hit .267 on the day.

Wolves volleyball came back from Alaska with a 6-9 record, 3-5 in-conference. Your next chance to see them at home is Oct. 20 against St. Martin’s, who the Wolves beat earlier this year. The night will be a pink out, so wear pink for breast cancer awareness.

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu