SAN RAFAEL, Calif. – Establishing leads of seven points or more in each set, Academy of Art volleyball confidently defeated Dominican 3-0 (26-24, 25-22, 25-17) inside Conlan Recreation Center on Wednesday night. Junior outside hitter Ashley Pawlak and sophomore setter Picabo Reinhold each posted double-doubles to lead the way for the Urban Knights.

"We were able to serve really well so it gave us opportunity to take the leads and hold them off," said head coach Allen McCreary. "It was good being back on the road as we need to be tested and be able to trust we can play away from our home site. Ashley played really consistently, was able to find a groove, and kept us on top."

Jumping in front 8-4 to start the opening set, ART U was already getting varied offensive production out of the gate. Though the Penguins battled back, Academy of Art had its 7-1 run highlighted by two kills from Reinhold and looked to claim the frame outright. Dominican once again rallied, tying the match at 21-21 and repeatedly thereafter until three straight points (two on kills by junior middle blocker Carly Evetts and Pawlak) ended things with the Knights on top 26-24.

The momentum carried into the second set where ART U went ahead 10-3 thanks to multiple kills from junior middle blocker Sadie Emery and Evetts. A 7-2 push from the Penguins closed the gap to 18-17, but Academy of Art refused to relinquish the lead as Pawlak, sophomore middle blocker Jillian Wheaton, Emery, and junior outside hitter Mariana Figueroa Ferriera all made contributions on offense for what became a 25-22 win and two-set advantage. 

Not wanting to leave the door open, the Knights opened set three with a 7-2 surge thanks to three more kills from Emery and later extended the margin with a 6-2 momentum shift that started with Emery as well. Pawlak and Wheaton accounted for the final five kills as ART U went from up 19-13 to 25-17 winners, securing the sweep.

With the win, Academy of Art improves to 5-11 overall and 3-6 in PacWest matchups thus far. Double-doubles came for Pawlak (13 kills, 20 digs) and Reinhold (35 assists, 18 digs) representing their sixth and 11th respectively. Emery added nine kills and Figueroa Ferriera contributed eight kills with 16 digs.

Dominican drops to 1-11 on the year and 1-6 in conference play. Catherine Johnson led the Penguins with 11 kills while Rebecca Smith turned in 18 assists and 14 digs.

The Urban Knights will travel to Fresno this Saturday for a 3 p.m. first serve against Fresno Pacific inside the Sunbirds' Special Events Center.