By: Gabrielle McLaren

The SFU women’s volleyball team competed in the D2 West Region Showcase September 7–9, hosted by the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC). For the second year in a row, the tournament unites all teams from the Division II West volleyball program. After a rough season start at the Seaside Invitational where the Clan lost 1–3, the team finished the tournament with two wins and two losses.

On Thursday, the Clan’s first game of the tournament was played against the Dominican University of California. Despite suffering a 3–1 loss, the Clan won back-to-back games the next day.

In the morning, the Clan faced off against Sonoma State University. After a tight game, SFU ultimately won 3–0. Senior outside hitter Kirsten Pinkney provided the Clan with 13 kills. Junior middle blocker Tessa May had a .364 hitting percentage with four kills, while Nicole Chevrier added six kills. That same afternoon, SFU faced off against Hawaii Pacific University, which brought up the Clan’s record from 1–4 to 3–4 after a 3–2 victory.

Women’s volleyball head coach Gina Schmidt told SFU Athletics that the volleyball team’s learning curve was expected:  “We have a lot of new people on the court this season and we knew it would take a bit of time for us to find our rhythm . . . We had contributions from everyone, both old and new . . . and it was great to see different players step up when we needed them.”

The next day, the team faced off against California State University and lost their final game 1–3, bringing the team’s overall record for the season to 3–5.  

Tessa May was named to the All-Tournament team after finishing the tournament with 24 kills, 16 blocks, and a .300 hitting percentage in the four matches. May enters the week ranked fourth in the GNAC, and senior outside hitter Christine Howlett enters the week ranked seventh in the GNAC.  

The Clan scored 8–4 all-time in the D2 West Region Showcase; it was 4–0 in 2016.