Columbia Basin won the first set Wednesday night, then lost the next three to Walla Walla: 22-25, 25-22, 25-23, 25-13.
The Hawks' opener showcased a steady hitting attack early on. They trailed 20-16 after a nine-point Warriors run, then outscored Walla Walla 9-2 to take game one, 25-22. Game two stayed tied until 18-18, when the Warriors pulled away 7-4 to level the match.
Game three was the one that got away. Columbia Basin opened on a 6-0 run, but Walla Walla answered with five straight points and led 23-17 late. The Hawks scored five in a row of their own to cut it to 23-22, but the Warriors closed it out 25-23. Game four was lopsided. After a 13-12 Walla Walla lead, the Warriors won 12 of the last 13 points. The Hawks hit .028 in that game with seven kills and six errors.
Over the whole match, Columbia Basin hit .103 with 42 kills and 27 errors. Walla Walla hit .188. Lexi Rupel took 34 swings and had nine errors. Four of the Hawks' five biggest hitters finished below .150.
Addisen Ford was the bright spot, with 11 kills, a .240 hitting percentage and six blocks (three solo). She finished with 17.5 points. Eva Biladeau hit .409 with 10 kills and one error on 22 swings, and Yahairi Sanchez ran the offense with 37 assists.
The back row held up. Katy Ball had 15 digs and Adalei Lefebvre had 14, helping Columbia Basin to 64 digs. The Hawks also out-blocked Walla Walla 9 to 4.
It's just the first loss of region play for the Hawks who will get a chance to rebound on the road at Big Bend Friday night at 6pm!
