“We knew this was going to be a big match and we wanted to make sure it wasn’t any bigger than it needed to be,” second-year Eagles coach Jon Haruguchi said. “Play where our feet are and play together.”
The Bears, 11-4 in the Big Sky and 16-10 overall, defeated the Bengals 25-14, 25-16 and 25-17. UNC has not lost since Oct. 26 when they were swept in three sets at home by league leader Sacramento State.
UNC improves to 9-4 in the Big Sky and 14-10 overall heading to its final road match of the season. UNC plays at 3 p.m. Saturday at Eastern Washington in Cheney.
UNC, 7-4 in the conference and 12-10 overall, has five regular-season matches remaining before the conference tournament later this month. UNC hosts the tournament Nov. 22-24 at Bank of Colorado Arena.