(SAN DIEGO) Courtney Dyer came back for a fifth season with multiple program records in sight.
 
She checked one of those off the list on Friday night in PLNU Women's Volleyball's three-set sweep of Academy of Art (25-23, 25-17, 25-19) inside Golden Gym.
 
With a service ace to open the second set, Dyer passed Savannah Wedemeyer for the most service aces in PLNU's NCAA era. She now ranks fourth all-time in PacWest history with 143.
 
"Courtney has made a statement, not only for this place and this program, but for the conference and the region," Scott said. "People know who she is. She's going to have her name in the record books for a long time.
 
"She's got the trifecta of being that server, passer and digger, which sets her apart in a lot of ways."

 

Following a competitive opening set, in which Academy of Art led 23-22 before a late Sea Lion surge, Dyer's strong serving helped PLNU start fast in the second stanza.
 
After opening the second set with a service ace, Dyer then served another ace a few points later as part of a 5-0 run.
 
Another five-point streak, this time fueled by three Bailey Williams kills, extended PLNU's second-set advantage to 10 at 23-13, before an Abigail Nua attack put Academy of Art on the brink.
 
"It definitely helped that Courtney went on that early run in the second set," Scott said of what helped his team pull away after a tight opening stanza. "We made a lot of errors in that first set.
 
"Ownership is important to me, that we can get to that place of personal pride in what I am doing and how that contributes to the greater us. It was a lot better in the second."
 
In the third set, yet another 5-0 Sea Lion run gave Point Loma firm control after a pair of kills each from Grace Hicks and Claire Smith helped PLNU take an early 10-4 lead.
 
Hicks' block then helped the Sea Lions double-up the Urban Knights' score at 20-10, setting the stage for freshman Izzy Reisinger to settle the match with a kill.
 
Scott highlighted his team's defensive hunger in the victory. Freshman Macy Reynolds tied her career-high with 14 digs, with Dyer pitching in 13 of her own.
 
"Before the game we talked about ownership in our defense," Reynolds said. "I really settled on that and wanted to get every single ball up."
 
Offensively, Nua led all players with 14 kills, while Smith was close behind with her 11. Lauren Phillips dished out a match-high 36 assists.
 
Point Loma (13-5 overall, 8-2 PacWest) has a quick turnaround, traveling to take on Azusa Pacific (10-8 overall, 7-4 PacWest) on Saturday at 3 p.m.
 
"We're just there to ball," Dyer said. "Coming off the Fresno game and where our emotions were, we're so ready to give it our all this next challenging game and see where we go.
 
"I think ownership has really been our key. Our team word this year is unity and playing as a unified front together going into this next match."