Resurgent Eagles eyeing 3rd
A little over a month ago, Eastern Washington University’s still-inexperienced volleyball team had just slipped to 0-5 in the Big Sky Conference following a 3-0 loss to perennial league power Sacramento State.
At that point, the struggling Eagles were staring at the unsettling possibilities of not finishing among the top six teams and missing the league tournament for the first time in 10 years.
Since then, however, coach Wade Benson’s team has won nine of 10 matches – including eight of nine against conference opponents. And with last week’s road sweep of Northern Colorado and Northern Arizona, the Eagles (16-8 overall, 8-6 in the Big Sky) not only cemented an 11th-consecutive berth in the conference tournament, but put themselves in position to finish as high as third in the regular season.
Saturday’s 3-1 victory over NAU moved surging Eastern into fourth place, just a half-match behind third-place Montana (12-12, 9-5), which invades Reese Court Saturday night for an 8:05 showdown that will mark the end of regular-season play for both teams.
Prior to that, the Eagles will play host to Montana State on Thursday at 7:05 p.m., knowing that a sweep of the Montana schools – which they accomplished on the road back in early September – would give them the No. 3 seed in the league tournament, which will be held at the site of the regular-season champion starting Nov. 16.
“We knew we were going to the BSC tournament, but we just didn’t know what place we were going to get,” Benson said. “We still don’t know, but we do have a chance to get third, and that’s great.
“Anybody can beat anybody in the conference tournament, so I don’t think getting third or sixth matters. But it matters for pride.”
The Eagles went into last year’s tournament as the No. 3 seed, and advanced to the championship match before losing to top-seeded Sac State 3-1.
NIC to host regional
North Idaho College, ranked No. 8 in the latest NJCAA top-25 poll, has captured the Scenic West Athletic Conference regular-season championship and the right to host the Region 18 A and SWAC Tournament that will be held Saturday in Christianson Gymnasium.
The top-seeded Cardinals (33-6 overall, 10-2 in the SWAC), coming off a 3-0 win over College of Southern Idaho last weekend, will get a first-round bye in the three-team, one-day tournament, playing the winner of Saturday’s 1 p.m. match between No. 2-seeded Snow College (21-17, 5-7) and No. 3-seeded Eastern Utah (7-25, 0-12) at 6 p.m.
Only three teams will compete in the tournament, because Salt Lake Community College (26-15, 7-5), which finished second in the SWAC standings, will play in the Region 18 B Tournament, and Southern Idaho is ineligible for postseason play.
Quick sets
North Idaho is the only team to have beaten Western Nebraska Community College, which sits atop the NJCAA top-25 poll with a 49-1 record. The Cardinals edged WNCC 2-1 in the Salt Lake CC Tournament back on Sept. 2. … Gonzaga’s 3-0 win over Portland on Saturday marked the first time the Bulldogs have swept a West Coast Conference opponent since Oct. 6, 2001, when they beat San Francisco 3-0. … Washington State, coming off a 3-0 sweep of Oregon State on the road, will host Pac-10 and cross-state rival Washington on Friday in its only match prior to a Nov. 16 home date with Arizona State.