ELLENSBURG, Wash. -- Caylie Seitz chalked up 15 kills with 11 digs and Madelyn Densberger added 11 kills and 22 digs, but the Sonoma State volleyball team couldn't overcome a 2-0 deficit, falling to No. 12 Western Washington in four sets (20-25, 20-25, 25-21, 16-25) in the season-opener for both teams at the Hampton Inn Wildcat Volleyball Invitational, hosted by Central Washington University in Ellensburg, Wash.  The Seawolves will return to the court on Friday at 5:30 pm against Saint Martin's.

Sonoma State's offensive efficiency never eclipsed the .100 mark in three of the four sets against Western Washington, with the exception of the third set when the Seawolves hit .244 en route to a 25-21 win, cutting the Vikings' lead in half, 2-1.  However, WWU stood tall in the fourth set, holding SSU to just .021 on offense to cruise to the 25-16 win to clinch the match.  The Seawolves hit .070 and .095 in the first two frames, respectively, and in total, they hit .107 (48k-29e-177a) for the match.

Seitz and Densberger accounted for 26 of the team's 48 kills, but Western Washington played stifling defense all evening, registering 86 digs and 10.0 blocks.  WWU's Kayla Erickson stuffed 3.0 attacks, adding 12 kills on offense.  Samantha Hutchinson made a match-high 33 digs for the nationally-ranked Vikings, who hit .172 for the match.  Her teammate, Kelsey Moore, led their offense with 13 kills.

The Seawolves' Regan Richert chipped in with eight kills, Ashley Robinson added five and Rachel Andrews and Calan Seitz had four.