Monday, October 9, 2023
by Thomas Lal

PORTLAND, Ore. – After five straight matches on the road, the Saint Martin’s volleyball team returned home and dominated both Alaska teams to take two wins and earn GNAC Team of the Week honors.

The Saints won all but one set last week, defeating Alaska Anchorage 3-1 on Thursday before sweeping Alaska 3-0 on Saturday and moving up to fourth in the conference standings. The weekly honor marks the first time since September 2021 that the Saint Martin’s volleyball team has been named the GNAC Team of the Week.

“It was good to see our team battle against two great programs in Anchorage and Fairbanks this past weekend,” head coach Dan Behnke said. “Our group showed a lot of girt in some tight situations. I love that we didn’t get too high or too low in those moments.”

The Saints opened the week with their first win over Alaska Anchorage since Nov. 1, 2007, with a 3-1 decision. Saint Martin’s won the first set 25-20 before the Seawolves came back to take the second set 25-22. The third set was a pitched battle between the two sides that saw the score tied 12 times and the lead change on seven occasions before SMU captured the frame with a score of 29-27. The Saints closed out the match in resounding fashion with a 25-11 score while holding UAA to a -0.81 attack percentage.

Leading the way for the Saints on Thursday were the two GNAC Players of the Week in senior setter Karla Soto and freshman defensive specialist/outside hitter Sirena Peredo. Soto had more than double the number of assists of any other player in the match, finishing the night with 46 while also adding four aces, three kills and a block. Peredo was a true double threat for SMU against UAA, notching her fifth double-double of the season with 17 kills and 18 digs. Peredo also added an ace and a block while hitting .282 in the victory.

On Saturday, Saint Martin’s kept the good times rolling by sweeping the Nanooks in three straight sets. The points were close all match as SMU took 26-24, 25-23 and 28-26 set-wins to secure the sweep. The defensive effort by the Saints proved to be a difference-maker as three players chipped in with double-digit dig totals while holding UAF to a 0.90 hitting percentage.

Junior libero Abbey Halstead led the way for SMU with 20 digs followed by Peredo with 16 and Soto with 11. Soto also finished the match with 32 assists to mark her third straight double-double and her fifth on the season. Offensively, Saint Martin’s was led by freshman outside hitter Emily Garten with 12 kills and six aces to go with two digs. Junior middle blocker Jennifer Soha backed up Garten with 11 kills, seven digs, two blocks and an ace while finishing with a .370 hitting percentage.  

Saint Martin’s (10-6, 4-3 GNAC) will be back on the road this week as it travels north to face Western Washington on Thursday and Simon Fraser on Saturday.