BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The Simon Fraser volleyball team lost its regular-season finale in four sets Saturday to Western Washington in Bellingham. The host Vikings triumphed by set scores of 20-25, 25-18, 25-18 and 26-24.
 
SFU finishes the regular season with an overall record of 17-8, and 11-7 in Great Northwest Athletic Conference contests. The league standings have yet to be finalized but the squad can finish tied for third.
 
SFU and WWU began the GNAC season back in September with a five-set classic that went to the Vikings at the West Gym. Today's matchup was just as entertaining.
 
Rookie opposite Brooke Dexter had 18 kills to lead the SFU offence, while sophomore outside hitter Camryn Vosloh recorded 15 and freshman outside hitter Jocelyn Sherman contributed 12.

Senior setter Julia Tays passed out 50 assists and dug up 16 balls. A four-year starter, Tays has amassed an SFU school record of 3,854 assists so far in her career. Senior libero Bianca Te led the squad with 22 digs.
 
Gabby Gunterman posted 17 kills for WWU.
 

Leading two sets to one, the Vikings held leads of 7-2, 13-7, and 19-12 in the fourth. However, Vosloh knocked down a kill to spark a 4-0 run to cut the gap to 19-16. WWU slowed SFU's momentum enough to hold a 23-19 advantage. Then SFU reeled off five-consecutive points to go ahead 24-23. Dexter started the run with a kill before the Vikings committed an attack error. Then SFU got two blocks in a row, the first from Tays and sophomore middle Kalyn Hartmann, and the second from Sherman, who followed up with a kill on the next play.
 
The home side regrouped and won the next three points to earn the win.
 
The opening set was closely contested and featured 14 ties. Western Washington led by a point but SFU took six of the next seven to go back up 21-17. Vosloh's kill levelled the score at 16-16, and an attack error gave the visitors the edge. Vosloh and freshman middle blocker Abby Willett combined for a block and then Vosloh posted another kill. The sides traded points before WWU served up an error. Dexter and Willett capped off the stretch with a block.
 
The Vikings earned three-consecutive points to get within one, and force SFU to call a timeout. But head coach Gina Schmidt re-focused her team, which came out of the break to record a kill from Dexter. Vosloh then hit consecutive aces to make the score 24-20. The set-clinching point came on a deep Sherman kill to the end line.
 
WWU won the second and third sets by seven points. One point separated the border rivals late in Set 2 (19-18), before the Vikings earned the final six to tie the contest. In Set 3, WWU didn't trail after taking an 11-8 lead.
 
The 2021 campaign was an impressive one for SFU, after it didn't compete in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The team will find out its post-season fate when the NCAA Division II Women's Volleyball Selection Show takes place Monday at 4:30 p.m. PT.

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