SURPRISE, Ariz. – In their first match to start the second half of Golden State Athletic Conference play, the OUAZ women's volleyball battled their way to a 3-0 win over Life Pacific on Friday night at Willow Canyon High School.
 
The competitive match featured 29 ties and 15 lead changes before OUAZ (5-11, 2-8 GSAC) escaped with the 25-23, 25-20, 29-27 victory. The Spirit rallied from a 24-22 deficit and fought off three match points in the third set for the sweep.
 
It took one of the best offensive nights of the season for the Spirit as they totaled 50 kills on .297 hitting. With 15 kills in each of the first two sets, OUAZ closed out the win with 20 kills in the final set. After hitting .220 in that first set, they came back to hit .324 and .349 in sets two and three respectively.
 
Three Spirit players had double figures in kills in the match. Sharron Wallace had a team-best 13 kills with Austin Edwards and Avie Butsko adding 12 kills apiece. Butsko hit .524 – her second-best percentage of the season – while Katie Defer hit .357 with six kills.
 
OUAZ surrendered 45 kills to Life Pacific (10-11, 3-7) in holding the Warriors to .192 hitting. The Spirit finished the match with 58 digs and four blocks.
 
Leni Bartley led the team with 17 digs and Star Hoskie added 16. Kanoe Vinoya finished with 40 assists, two kills, and three digs.
 
The visiting Warriors had a 7-3 edge in service aces, and they recorded seven blocks.
 
The Spirit will close their five-match homestand on Saturday afternoon with a GSAC contest against Hope International. First serve at Willow Canyon High School is scheduled for 1 p.m.