Box Score
MISSOULA, Mont. ? Behind at least nine kills from four players, Gonzaga defeated the Canisius College volleyball team 30-26, 30-21, 30-13 at the Ruby's Montana Invitational in the season opener for both schools.
For the Griffs (0-1), Michella Domo (Vancouver, B.C.) led the team with 11 kills on 19 attempts, which was good for a team-high .474 attack percentage.
Becky Jones led all players in the game with 13 kills while Briawna Mueller had 11 kills for the Zags. Elaina Renius and Michelle Boevers each also had nine kills apiece for Gonzaga (1-0).
In the first game, the Griffs fell behind early as Gonzaga turned a 7-6 lead into a 14-7 advantage. The Griffs chipped away at the lead and eventually got within two to make the score 28-26. The Zags then closed out the match on kills from Reinus and Mueller.
In both games two and three, similar to game one, Gonzaga took early leads, but in those games the Zags didn't let the Blue and Gold get back into the game. Gonzaga had a 17-8 lead in game two as Canisius couldn't get closer than five points while in game three, the Zags took control from the start, building an early double-digit lead.
“The team's effort and performance during the first game and first half of game two was encouraging,” Canisius coach Cathy Hummel said. “We need to be consistent with that throughout an entire match, especially when the other team makes a run on us.”
Jess Stackhouse (Warsaw, N.Y.) led the Griffs with nine digs while Nicole Fafard (East Setuaket, N.Y.) had six kills.
Canisius has two matches Saturday in the Ruby's Montana Invitational. The Golden Griffins play the host Grizzlies at 2 p.m. Eastern, and play UC Irvine at 6:30 p.m. Eastern.
Match Notes: The 11 kills by Domo are the most by a Canisius freshman in a season opener in the last five years... Canisius featured a starting lineup of three freshmen, one sophomore and two juniors along with Stackhouse at the libero position... The Aug. 24 start date is the earliest in program history... Prior to this weekend, Canisius had never played Gonzaga, Montana or UC Irvine.
