March 7, 2003
STANFORD, Calif. - Junior Sean Rodgers (Fresno, CA) had 12 kills to lead eighth-ranked Pacific to a 30-20, 30-23, 30-23 victory over Findlay in the opening match of the Cardinal Invitational on Friday night at Burnham Pavilion. The Tigers improved to 12-8, while the Oilers slipped to 8-12.
On Saturday, in the second and final day of the Cardinal Invitational, fifth-ranked Lewis plays Pacific at 5:00 p.m. and 10th-ranked Stanford takes on Findlay at 7:30 p.m.
The Tigers broke open the first game with six unanswered points that stretched a three-point lead to nine at 23-14. The Oilers, who hit .083 (18 k-8 e-24 ta) in game one, could get no closer than seven points the rest of the way.
Findlay led 10-8 in game two, but the Tigers came back to tie score on several occasions. Pacific eventually took a 23-22 lead, and closed out the game by scoring seven of the final eight points. The Tigers hit an impressive .571 (19-3-28) in game two.
Pacific, which hit .609 (17-3-23) in the third and final game, scored seven unanswered points in game three to turn an 11-10 deficit into a 17-11 advantage. The Tigers closed out the contest on their first match point on a kill by sophomore Nils Dauburs (Riga, Latvia).
Pacific hit .481 (34-20-80) for the match, and recorded 20 digs to Findlay's 14. The Oilers hit .175 (34-20-80) in the 72-minute match.
Rodgers hit 786 (12-1-14) to lead the Tigers, while senior Aaron Wachtfogel (Redondo Beach, CA) added 10 kills, six digs and two service aces.
Junior Jeff Overfield (Mew Madison, OH) led the Oilers with a match-high 13 kills.