Outside hitters Bethany Tuchardt, Katie Birtcil and Tia Allen combined for 35 kills and took turns delivering late-set heroics Saturday, lifting the Alaska Anchorage volleyball team to a 25-22, 18-25, 25-23, 27-25 victory over Seattle Pacific at Royal Brougham Pavilion.

The Seawolves (9-7, 3-3 Great Northwest Athletic Conference) got 11 kills on .370 hitting and five total blocks from Tuchardt as they won a second straight road match despite being slightly outhit, .163 to .157.

The Falcons (1-12, 1-4) were led by 12 kills from Erin Smith, while GNAC preseason player-of-the-year Hannah Hair was limited to six kills and three total blocks.

“There were a lot of momentum swings in that match, and we were able to compose ourselves and respond after a couple of their late runs,” said UAA head coach Stacie Meisner. “Our defense was also fantastic at extending some rallies with hustle plays and taking advantage of those extra opportunities.”

In a series split 33-32 (in favor of UAA) overall and tied 16-16 all-time in Seattle before Saturday, it was another closely contested affair, coming down to a handful of points.

UAA opened an 18-9 advantage in the first before the hosts stormed back, drawing within 22-21 after three straight Seawolf errors. Tuchardt took control with a kill on the next point, however, and stuffed Smith for a solo block on the outside to make it 24-22. The Seawolves took it when SPU’s Allison Wilks hit wide.

The Falcons outhit the visitors .344 to .125 in the second to even the match, setting up a seesaw last two frames.

Facing a 17-15 deficit in the third, the Seawolves got a tying ace from Madison Galloway – one of four on the day for the junior libero – and a kill from Leilani Elder to highlight a 5-0 run. SPU answered to make it 23-23 on a kill by Smith, but Birtcil smacked a kill off the SPU block and teamed with Bella Burney to stuff Wilks in the middle of the net.

The fourth featured 11 ties and four lead changes as neither team could take control. SPU erased a 21-19 hole with five straight scores, earning set point at 24-21. UAA stayed alive behind a kill from Larssen Anderson and consecutive Falcon attack errors, before Smith’s final kill produced yet another SPU set point at 25-24.

This time, it was Allen’s turn to play hero. The Clayton, Wash., native converted Hannah Trotter’s assist to tie the match, then dropped consecutive aces – her only aces of the match – into the middle of the court to cap the win.

Allen finished with 12 kills on .286 hitting and 16 digs, while Birtcil had 12 kills and matched her UAA high with 21 digs. Galloway added 16 digs and four assists, while Trotter and setting mate Kadyn Osborne combined for 27 assists, 22 digs and two aces.

Elder tallied five kills and five block assists.

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