Young Wolves Fall to Whitman

8/31/2014 8:24:00 AM

Walla Walla, Washington – The Walla Walla University Wolves fell to the Whitman Missionaries 3-1 Friday afternoon in the Sherwood Athletic Center. In a match that began with two excited teams, the Missionaries took the first game of the match (25-5). "I've got to hand it to Matt Helm, he's a great head coach" said Wolves coach Don Hepker following the match. "Their team came out and did everything right. We created so many unforced errors, and just didn't play well to start off."

The second set was a different story for Walla Walla, following their early struggles. "We just focused on energy" stated Hepker recalling the 25-20 advantage. "Once we got our energy up, and started having some fun, we played a lot better." Sophomore outside hitter Maria Darling came in with a strong kill for the 21^st point of the set, and didn't let a misplay on what would have been set point stop the Wolves from taking the game. Darling on team communication: "No matter what, we always come to the middle as a team after the play. We just tried to stay positive, and pick each other up when it was needed."

The third game of the afternoon started a little bit rough for the Wolves. Following a few team errors, freshmen Lauren Barlow came in with a tenacious kill bringing the deficit to 10-15. The energy stuck with the team and a little bit of a rally ensued. Another Barlow kill, along with a big block by freshmen Natalie Skeoch, brought the score to 15-16. However, Whitman responded with a rally of their own, and finished the set 25-17.

25-12 was the result of the fourth and final game, in which Whitman played well. The Wolves never were able to mount a comeback.

Barlow, and Darling led the team in kills and digs, respectively, with 13 kills, nine digs for Barlow, along with the nine kills and 14 digs added by Darling. Three more freshmen stood out in the final stats. Lauren Bosler contributed 17 assists. Sierra Hample came up with eight digs. And Perri Shanko combined with Skeoch to make a formidable pair of middle blockers. "Perri and Natalie in the middle were just solid" remarked Hepker. "They may not have gotten a lot of blocks, but they were directing the hits so we could get a lot of digs." The praise extended for Barlow, "Lauren on the outside did absolutely incredible." The Wolves are a young team who start, and play a group that is mostly made up of freshman. Getting game experience is a large part in the development of this team.

Over the holiday weekend, Walla Walla will travel to Forest Grove, Oregon for the Pacific University Tournament. Saturday night's opponent will be the host Pacific Boxers, with a scheduled start time of 8:30 pm. (Live Video). Sunday's matches will pit the Wolves against Evergreen State College (11:00 am), and Oregon Tech (1:00 pm).

"It's all about energy level, we need to pick our energy level up and dictate the plays" said Hepker. Maria Darling echoed the words of her coach: "We have the skill level, we have the teamwork, for us it just comes down to heart – and giving it everything we have."

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