PORTLAND, Ore. – Recent history repeated itself Sunday at the Northwest Invitational, where the Linfield Wildcats lost a five-set heartbreaker to begin the day before rebounding with a three-game sweep.

Linfield took a 2-0 lead on Edgewood College, only to watch as the Eagles scored the five-set shocker. The ‘Cats answered with a three-set whitewash of New Hope Christian to finish with a 2-2 record at the two-day, seven-team tournament co-hosted by Lewis & Clark and George Fox at the Pamplin Sports Complex.

The outcomes mirrored Saturday’s season-opening matches in which the Wildcats went the distance with Mayville State before losing in five sets, then responded a with three-set sweep of Embry-Riddle.

Edgewood def. Linfield 22-25, 22-25, 25-15, 25-21, 15-11
The Eagles of Madison, Wis., completed an improbable rally from a 2-0 deficit to take the match in five sets.

The Wildcats hit a combined percentage of .010 at the net, but Edgewood wasn’t much more effective, hitting .066 for the match. The two teams combined for 71 attack errors and 22 service errors in the early season match.

Linfield freshman Kailana Ritte-Camara (Soph., Molokai, Hawaii) paved the way with 11 kills, 13 digs, two blocks assists and a pair of service aces. Reserve outside hitter Shalyli Coppock totaled eight kills, three digs and two block assists. Middle blocker Kelsey Ludin (Jr., Bozeman, Mont.) contributed six kills and half a dozen digs.

Libero Samatha Lau kept the Wildcats in the match with 34 digs, four assists and an ace. Freshman setter Audrey Frazier (Soph., Albany, Ore.) passed out 23 assists to complement her five kills and 13 digs.

Linfield def. New Hope Christian 25-20, 25-18, 25-23
The Wildcats pulled away from an 18-all tie to defeat the Deacons by five in the opening set, from Eugene, Ore. Linfield seemed to feed of the late surge, controlling sets 2 and 3 from start to finish.

A balanced attack that featured seven kills apiece from Kailana Ritte-Camara (Soph., Molokai, Hawaii) and Kelsey Ludin (Jr., Bozeman, Mont.) spurred the Wildcats to victory.

Courtney Wanamaker (Soph., West Linn, Ore.) came off the bench to contribute three service aces, and Cora Hall had a team-high seven assists while adding five digs. Stephanie Newman had a hand in three block assists.

COMING UP: Linfield packs its bags for an extended road trip to the Lone Star State during the coming week. The Wildcats will compete in the Bulldog Classic tournament hosted by Texas Lutheran at Seguin, Texas.