HONOLULU – On September 2, 2006, the Chaminade University women's volleyball team pulled off one of the biggest upsets in program history, defeating No. 8 Nebraska-Kearney in four sets in Anchorage, Alaska.
Eleven years later, the Silverswords were hoping for a repeat of history. However, another upset didn't come to fruition, opening the 2017 season Friday with a 3-0 loss (25-14, 25-12, 25-20) to UNK in the Hawai'i Challenge at McCabe Gym.
Kira Long (Vista, Calif./Rancho Buena Vista) led the Silverswords (0-1) with nine kills while
Emma Tecklenburg (Plano, Texas/Plano Senior) contributed with eight and a team-high six digs.
The Lopers, who were 35-2 a year ago and currently ranked No. 3 in the AVCA Preseason Top-25 Poll, were led by Kaitlynn Thomas' 17 kills. Kendall Schroer followed with 14.
UNK hit .404 in the match while CUH was held to a .140 hitting percentage although Chaminade held the edge in total team blocks, 5-4.
The 'Swords seemed to have opening-night jitters in the first set but seemed to shake them off in the second. Chaminade held their own early in Set 2, trailing only 8-6, but an 8-2 Lopers' run helped up the visitors up 2-0.
In the third set, the 'Swords managed to make the match interesting, forging a 9-all tie but UNK's 7-1 surge helped put the match away.
Despite the loss, several Silversword newcomers made contributions.
Brooke Bell (Escondido, Calif./North Idaho College) had five kills while
Claire Zanon (Beaverton, Ore./Jesuit) had five digs and
Alexis Hamilton (Miami/Valley Christian) had three kills and three total blocks (two solo).
Skyler Curry (Thousand Oaks, Calif./Westlake) had 14 assists for Chaminade with
Hannah Baker (Bellville, Texas/San Jacinto JC) adding seven.
The Hawai'i Challenge continues Saturday as the 'Swords battle Seattle Pacific at 11 a.m. then No. 8 Lewis at 7 p.m. while Colorado Colorado Springs faces Lewis at 1:30 p.m. All three matches will be at McCabe Gym. Live streaming audio for Chaminade's match against Lewis will be available on GoSwords.com.
