By Jacob Norling
November 13, 2024
 
(Santa Barbara, Calif.) Westmont Volleyball (14-10, 9-8 PacWest) is entering the final stretch of PacWest play with an above .500 record in conference contests after the Warriors defeated Hawaii Pacific (2-22, 2-16) on Wednesday night. The Warriors, who have now won six of their last eight, should take pride in their ability to get above .500 in conference play. Westmont began the season dropping their first three PacWest games, and five of their first seven.
 
Individually, Alexis Dennick shined on the night with a team-high 11 kills, and a game-high eight blocks. Audrey Hyde was next with eight kills, while Taylor Distelberg contributed with seven blocks. Sara Krueger got in on the action with both six kills and six blocks.
 
Westmont's serving was head and shoulders above HPU's with Ella Hosfeld and Maddie Finnegan both collecting a trio of aces, while Rylee Elias added a pair as well. Elias ended the night with 15 digs, while a well-rounded night from Finnegan allowed her to finish with 15 as well. Ella Hosfeld led Westmont with 22 assists, while Alexa Shiner collected 15 in her penultimate match in Santa Barbara.
 
As a team, Westmont recorded 15 blocks compared to HPU's six, and 10 aces compared to their three. With their strong serving and relentless blocking, Westmont held Hawaii Pacific to an attack percentage of .092 in the four-set win.
 
While lopsided in many categories, the first two sets were extremely competitive. Westmont trailed 16-11 in the opening act, before a pair of kills from Dennick sparked a three-point swing to pull the Warriors within one. Minutes later, a block from Krueger and Distelberg pulled the two sides even at 19 apiece. It looked like it may be a moot point when the Sharks went up 23-20, but the Warriors responded by scoring five unanswered points to steal set one 25-23. In the end, it was a kill from Distelberg off a pass from Hosfeld that sealed the deal.
 
After HPU won the second set 25-22, the Warriors regained control in the third set thanks to an early surge. After the game was tied 7-7, Audrey Hyde swiped a kill that opened up a five-point swing to put Westmont up 12-7. From that point on, the Warriors never again trailed in a set they won 25-15.
 
To highlight the match-ending win in set four, Finnegan went on an eight-point service run that began in an 11-7 game, and ended with Westmont up 18-7. In the end, kill number 11 from Dennick was the final touch in a 25-11 win to end the match.
 
"We had some great serving on the night," pointed out Westmont head coach Ruth McGolpin. "Maddie Finnegan had an amazing run in set four, and Kaili Hashimoto came in and did a really nice job as well. The attack was highlighted by Lexi Dennick, she was amazing. On top of that, her blocking was spectacular as well.
 
"Nariah Prescott came in and did a really nice job as well, and then Taylor Distelberg was solid as well. The story of the night, though, was the serving and the passing. We out-paced them in those categories, as well as our blocking. Our serving is what set up the blocking at the end of the day."
 
Westmont concludes its home slate of PacWest games on Saturday at 2:00 p.m., when the Warriors host the Concordia Golden Eagles in Santa Barbara. Links to tickets and live coverage