By Jacob Norling
October 23, 2024
 
(SANTA BARBARA, Calif.) Westmont Volleyball (10-8, 5-6 PacWest) trailed a September 28 match against the Biola Eagles (4-15, 2-9) two sets to none. That second set, however, would be the last time that Biola defeated Westmont in 2024. That's because back in La Mirada, Westmont pulled off a reverse-sweep at the hands of their old rivals. Then, on this Wednesday night in Santa Barbara, the Warriors came away with a clean sweep to claim the season series.
 
It all started in a dominant first set for the Warriors, where Westmont out-blocked Biola 6-0. Technically, Biola out-killed Westmont 11-10 during the set, but looking further, the Eagles committed a total of nine attacking errors during the frame, compared to just two for Westmont. At the end of the eventual 25-16 win for Westmont, the Eagles had a hitting percentage of .049, while the Warriors' stood at .276.
 
Alexis Dennick and Sara Krueger each tallied two blocks during the opener, while Audrey Hyde led a balanced Westmont attack with a trio of kills. Set two appeared more competitive from the onset, with the two sides trading early blows to a 6-6- ties. Then, a pair of kills from the electrifying Maddie Finnegan sparked a 6-0 run for the Warriors who led 12-6.
 
Twice Biola cut the deficit to one, but after making it 14-13, consecutive kills from Finnegan and Hyde began a 6-1 run for the Warriors that all but ended the set (20-14). Minutes later, a block from Krueger and Aaliyah Czernin put the finishing touches on a 25-19 win to put Westmont up 2-0.
 
Set three is when the Eagles hung with the Warriors for the longest, with two sides finding themselves in a 14-14 tie partway through the set. Then, a kill from Hyde followed by a pair of BU attacking errors gave the Warriors a three-point lead they never relinquished.
 
For the exclamation point, Westmont went on a 6-0 run to make it 23-16, with Krueger's eighth kill capping off the surge. Moments later, Finnegan's team-high 11th kill made it an official 3-0 sweep, with Westmont taking the final set 25-18.
 
"Our team brought the energy from start-to-finish," began Westmont head coach Ruth McGolpin. "Our blocking was so good, and then our serving and passing game was exactly what we wanted. I mean, look at the numbers, we out-blocked them 10-2.
 
"That's something that we work on a daily basis, along with serving and passing, and all of those areas were fantastic tonight. We were really scrappy tonight, and it was great."
 
While Finnegan led with her 11 kills, Dennick and Czernin each recorded five blocks. Alexa Shiner led Westmont in both assists (14) and digs (15), while Ella Hosfeld added in 10 assists of her own. Freshmen Rylee Elias and Alyson Wurster each recorded eight digs.
 
McGolpin continued, "Rylee has been playing great, and Alyson Wurster has stepped us in her role as well. Sara Kruger has also continued to be dynamite, and then it was great to see Maddie Finnegan get on track offensively as well.
 
"From start-to-finish, we just played great tonight."
 
Westmont returns to action on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. at Azusa Pacific, where the Warriors will take on the Cougars for the second time this season. Links to live coverage will be available on the Westmont Athletics website.