Boxscore
Reno, Nev. - The University of Nevada(6-5) volleyball team swept Portland(6-6) on Sunday afternoon at the Virginia Street Gym in Reno by scores of 30-17, 30-19, and 30-28 to win the Molten Invitational. With the victory the Wolf Pack improved to 6-5 while Portland is now 6-6 on the season. The Pack won both of its matches in the invitational to claim the title while the Pilots finished second with a 1-1 record. UT Pan American was winless in its two matches.
Nevada dominated game one winning easily 30-17 to take a 1-0 advantage in the match. The Pack hit .357 in the first game and held Portland to a .088 attack percentage.
The Wolf Pack continued its domination in game two winning 30-19. Holding a slim one-point advantage at 10-9 the Pack outscored the Pilots 20-10 to take the commanding 2-0 games advantage into to the locker room. Nevada’s hitting percentage slipped to .214 but Portland’s percentage dropped even lower than in game one to .051.
In the closest game of the match Nevada rallied from a late 26-21 deficit to win 30-28. With the match tied at 28-28 the Pack got kills from Jorgan Staker and Karly Sipherd to close out the game and match. Both teams hit over .300 in the final game with Nevada posting a .347 attack percentage and Portland hitting .306.
Carly Sorensen posted a double-double with match highs in kills(14) and digs(11). Teal Ericson finished the match with 12 kills. Setter Tristin Johnson dished out a match high 37 assists.
Kelly Whitehouse led Portland with 11 kills and setter Kara Pein had 31 assists. Maria Clemens finished with a team high 10 digs for the Pilots.
The Pack hit .314 in the match compared to Portland's .147 attack percentage. The Pilots won the blocking battle 9-8. Jennifer Sheedy and Ashley Grayson had for blocks each for Portland while Nevada was led by Staker’s six.
Nevada placed three players on the all-tournament team including the MVP in Johnson. Joining her were Ericson and Sorensen. Portland also placed three players on the squad in Sheedy, Nicole Thometz, and Clemens. UTPA was represented on the squad by Kellie Phillips.
Nevada returns to action on Thursday when they open Western Athletic Conference play versus San Jose State at 7:00 p.m. in the Virginia Street Gym.
