ASHLAND, Ore. – Career days from multiple Oregon Tech players wasn't enough inside Lithia Motors Pavilion, as the Lady Owls opened up the 2023 volleyball season with two 5-set losses on Day 1 of the Raider Invitational.
 
Tech (0-2) squandered a two-set lead in their morning match, dropping a tough 14-25, 25-27, 25-18, 21-25, 15-8 decision to Embry-Riddle, before rallying to force a fifth set in a tight 21-25, 25-9, 25-23, 18-25, 15-13 loss to No. 25-ranked Jessup.
 
"Our focus today was resiliency and a growth mind set and we achieved both of the goals," said OIT head coach Alexis Garrison. "We grew from the first match to the second match."
 
Things started quickly in the opener, as the Lady Owls dominated Set 1 – hitting at a stellar .367 clip. Savanna Sterck capped a 6-2 run to open the match with a kill, adding consecutive kills as the lead grew to 15-8. Kate Hicks put the exclamation point on the set with a kill, extending the margin to 21-10.
 
OIT had to rally in Set 2, withstanding a pair of Eagles (1-1) set points behind two Willow Jacobson kills and a combo block. Sterck and Hicks provided the winning point with tandem block to give the Owls the commanding lead in the match.
 
ERAU did not go away – using a 7-2 run in Set 3 to take a 20-13 lead, while scoring the final three points of Set 4 on two kills and a block from Dalia Haase to send the match to a fifth set.
 
The finale was all Eagles, as the Arizona school scored nine of the first 10 points. Tech sliced the margin to 10-7 on a Hicks kill, but the Owls could not get closer.
 
Sterck recorded a career-high with 19 kills, Molly Grace had 12 kills and Jacobson tied a career-high with 10 kills, adding eight digs and three blocks. Hicks tied a career-high with nine kills and set a new single-match mark with nine blocks. Setter Paige Tevelde recorded 32 assists and eight digs, while libero Kaley Whalen recorded a career-high 22 digs.
 
Alexsandra Rodriguez had 12 kills to lead the Eagles, with setter Katie Rolle ending the match with six kills, 39 assists and 16 digs.
 
Following a two-hour break, OIT faced the Top-25 ranked Warriors (1-1) – following the same script. Sterck blasted consecutive kills in a Set 1 7-point run, turning a 1-point lead into a 20-12 edge, as OIT struck first.
 
Jessup answered in the middle sets – forcing 12 errors in a Set 2 rout, while outlasting Tech in a third set that featured 14 ties and eight lead changes.
 
OIT prolonged the match with a late 5-0 run in Set 4, keyed by two Hicks kills, breaking a 15-15 stalemate – forcing a final run to 15.
 
Tech never led in Set 5, rallying from a 7-3 deficit to pull even at 12-12 on a Hicks-Tevelde combo block. After the teams traded side outs, Eliana Sheridan delivered a kill for Jessup and an OIT hitting error ended the match.
 
Grace paced OIT with a career-high 17 kills, Sterck posted 11 kills, with Hicks adding nine. Jacobson recorded eight kills and a career-high 17 digs; Tevelde had 40 assists; Whalen matched her morning mark with 22 digs; with Abigail Sorensen finished with a career-high 16 digs.
 
Madalyn Miller led JU with 14 kills, hitting at a .500 percentage, as the Warriors had a 58-49 edge in kills and held a 11-5 lead in total blocks.
 
"We learned how to start, but now we need to learn how to finish," Garrison said. "These women did some amazing things and played with their heart."
 
Tech closes out tournament play tomorrow, meeting Menlo College at 9 a.m. and matching up with Vanguard University at 5 p.m.