SAN DIEGO - The Point Loma women's volleyball team closed out the 2019 D2 West Region Showcase with a pair of loss against two of the top teams in the West. The Sea Lions fell to Alaska Anchorage out of the GNAC in the morning before dropping a match to No. 2 nationally-ranked Cal State San Bernardino in the evening.
 
Match 1
Alaska Anchorage's Eve Stephens was more than the Sea Lions could handle in Saturday's opening match of the D2 Showcase. The sophomore middle blocker had 16 kills and five blocks in the three sets to lead the Seawolves to a 25-21, 25-21 and 25-21 win.
 
Her effort at the net propeled UAA to win the blocking battle 11-4. Vera Pluharova led the way with eight total blocks, including two solo blocks. She added six kills on just nine swings for a .667 hitting percentage.
 
Madie Fox paced PLNU with 12 kills and a .476 hitting percentage. She was the only Sea Lion with over seven points in the match. Courtney Dyer had a match-high 14 digs in the loss.
 
Match 2
The Sea Lions ran into the No. 2 team in the country at their home gym on Saturday night, and the Coyotes looked like they deserved even a better ranking.
 
CSUSB hit .463 over the three sets, including a .714 mark without any errors in the third set. Sascha Dominique had 11 kills and just one error, while Alexis Cardoza posted 13 kills with only three errors to lead the Coyotes.
 
Madie Fox had nine kills to lead the Sea Lions. Sophie Wingert added two service aces, and Cara Keturakis had 25 assists.
 
Team Records
Point Loma (4-4, 0-0 PacWest), #2 Cal State San Bernardino (7-0, 0-0 CCAA), Alaska Anchorage (5-3, 0-0 GNAC)
 
Scott's Thoughts
On lessons that can be taken from today: "We need to battle on every play of every point. We showed signs here and there, but consistency is important against more experienced teams. We just need to learn and move on.
 
On conference play beginning next week: "We're ready for conference."
 
News and Notes
> Madie Fox has led the Sea Lions in kills each of the past three matches
> PLNU is now 2-4 all-time against Alaska Anchorage and 6-4 against Cal State San Bernardino
> Point Loma is 4-0 in matches in which it hits at least .200, and 0-4 in matches it hits below that mark
 
Up Next
PLNU will open the 2019 PacWest Conference season on Wednesday, Sept. 18 at Concordia. The match will begin at 7 p.m.