TURLOCK, Calif. - On day one of the D2 West Region Volleyball Showcase, Western Oregon put up a spirited effort, but was unable to upend Concordia-Irvine in Turlock, Calif. The Wolves battled close in the first three sets, eventually falling in four sets by scores of 22-25, 25-19, 23-25, 8-25.
 
The loss puts Western Oregon at 0-4, while Concordia-Irvine remains unbeaten at 5-0.
 
For the fourth straight match, junior Alisha Bettinson reached double-digits in kills, while five WOU players picked up at least 10 digs. Bettinson was the only player to do both, notching her second double-double on the year posting 12 kills and 16 digs. Redshirt freshman Libbie Hoene led the Wolves with 20 digs and senior libero Christie Colasurdo followed with 17 digs.
 
Sophomore setter Maddie Mechiz joined Bettinson with a double-double of 29 assists and 10 digs. Junior defensive specialist Sheila Limas De La Cruz was the fifth player with double-figure digs with 12. Senior middle blocker Paige Orth had a solid offensive match with eight kills, hitting .438 with only one error. Sophomore hitter Amanda Short added five kills and had two solo blocks.
 
Concordia-Irvine held a distinct advantage in most offensive categories with edges in kills (58-36), assists (49-33), total blocks (5-3) and hitting percentage (.249-.071). WOU held a slight edge in digs (89-80) and bested the Eagles in service aces (8-2).
 
Western Oregon and CUI played even early in the first set, but saw a 12-10 advantage wiped away when the Eagles ran off four points in a row to take a 14-12 lead. Kills by Mariella Vandenkooy and Short ended a three- point spurt to retake the lead, but another 4-0 CUI rally built the cushion to three. Despite pulling within a point at 22-23, the Wolves surrendered the first set after an Eagles kill and a block for a 25-22 score.
 
Set two saw the Eagles open a 9-4 lead when WOU notched a 6-0 run to open a 10-9 advantage. Short had a kill, Hoene had one of her two match aces and WOU took advantage of three errors during the string. CUI would retake a slim lead at 17-16 before the Wolves reeled off five successive points including a pair of Orth kills and another Hoene ace. Bettinson had two late kills including the game-winner for a 25-19 set victory.
 
The third frame was a set of multiple-point runs. After the scoreboard see-sawed, WOU took a 15-13 lead midway through the set after a pair of Sydney Blankinship kills. Concordia-Irvine seized momentum with five straight points in a stretch where they scored nine of 12 rallies to lead 22-18. A Short kill sparked a three-point WOU retort, but the Eagles responded every time the Wolves tried to tie it up to take a close set, 25-23.
 
There was little doubt that the Eagles wanted to close out the match in four sets, rocketing out to a 10-1 lead. Kills from freshman Katherine Huntington and sophomore setter Leila Holt could not spark a rally as CUI took the match winning the set, 25-8. The Eagles were a perfect 9-of-9 on side out rallies and hit a monstrous .405 for the set.
 
In total, the match saw25 ties and 11 lead changes in a tough battle for the Wolves against the talented Eagles.
 
Day two of the D2 West Region Showcase will feature the only doubleheader of the year for WOU. At 12:30 p.m., Western Oregon faces Hawaii Pacific. The Sharks fell in three sets to host Stanislaus State on Thursday. In the second match of the day, WOU faces Chico State at 5:30 p.m. The Wildcats swept Alaska in their first showcase match.