TACOMA, Washington – The Puget Sound volleyball team opened its weekend home stand with a 3-1 loss (25-20, 29-27, 18-25, 25-21) to Willamette on Dig Pink Night (hosted by the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee) at Memorial Fieldhouse on Friday.  

Logger Sports Network

Moira McVicar posted her 12^th double-double of the season with 27 assists and 17 digs for the Loggers (8-12, 7-4 NWC), and Rachael Garrison came away with a game-high 26 digs.

The Bearcats (11-9, 6-5 NWC) opened the game by grabbing a 4-0 lead in the first set, but a kill by Heather Sangster sparked a 6-0 run to give Puget Sound a 7-5 edge. The Loggers increased their lead to 17-13 after a kill by Reilly Fitzpatrick, but Willamette slowly chipped away and overtook the lead for a 25-20 win.

Puget Sound found itself in deeper hole after it lost the second set, 29-27, but the deficit isn't unfamiliar territory for the young Loggers. Puget Sound has won two conference games this year after trailing 2-0.

Sure enough, the Loggers bounced back with a 25-18 win in the third set. Puget Sound jumped out to an 8-2 lead, but Willamette called a timeout, regrouped, and cut the Loggers' lead to 9-8.  The Loggers survived the Bearcat surge as a kill from Nicolette Reynaud gave the Loggers 14-9 lead and they never looked back en route to winning the set. 

Puget Sound and Willamette were locked at 15-15 in the fourth set, but the Bearcats scored five of the next six points to claim a 20-16 advantage. The Loggers showed late life when they cut a six-point deficit to just 24-21, but the Bearcats closed out the match with a 25-21 win.

Prior to Friday's match, Puget Sound honored the late Stana Landon, who lost her battle with breast cancer in 2012. Landon, a former Logger athletic trainer, was a shining member of the Puget Sound community.