LACEY, Wash. – Alaska Fairbanks' offense proved to be too much for the Saints to handle, as UAF averaged over 12 kills and hit .300 for the match, sweeping the Saints in straight sets on Saturday afternoon.
 
The Saints (2-14, 0-10) continue to look for their first win in the conference season, and had their losing streak stretched to 11 matches. Alaska (7-10, 5-5) continued their winning streak, backed by a whole team effort on the offensive end and 16 team blocks.
 
The Nanooks quickly put the first set out of reach, starting on a 15-4 run as UAF collected a match high 15 kills in the set. The Saints managed to trim the lead to seven after service aces by Courtney Misner and Ililani Kamaka; however, Alaska sealed the victory by claiming four of the last five points.
 
In the second set, another early run by Alaska set the tone, as the Nanooks took an 11-6 lead after the 8-1 run. The Saints attempted their comeback, using kills by Megan Vernoy and Kamaka, along with another Kamaka ace, but the Nanooks hung on for the 25-18 set win.
 
Saint Martin's looked to have momentum on their side in the final set, claiming a 10-6 lead; highlighted by an ace for Alyssa Bartlett. After the Nanooks managed to regain the lead at 12-11, the Saints roared back with three kills by Vernoy to jump back out front. The Nanooks squeezed back into the lead and closed out the match on a 4-0 run.
 
Vernoy led the team with 11 kills, while Kamaka added eight kills, six digs, and two aces. Rachel Gondrezick and Molly Cichosz combined for 12 kills. Misner finished the match with 22 digs while Barlett led the team with 20 assists, along with her eight digs. The Saints as a team finished with nine aces.
 
Saint Martin's travels to Western Oregon next Thursday, October 11 at 7:00 p.m. Live stats and video will be available on smusaints.com.