By Jacob Norling
November 7, 2025
 
(COSTA MESA, Calif.) Entering Friday night, Westmont Volleyball (10-14, 4-6 PacWest) had not been reverse-swept since November of 2022, and Vanguard (16-7, 4-5) had not successfully completed a reverse-sweep since that same month, coincidentally. Fortunately for Westmont fans, both things remain true after the Warriors out-lasted the Lions in five in a match they once led two sets to none.
 
"Our defense was incredible," said Westmont head coach Ruth McGolpin. "Our defense was solid, and we came up big in the big moments. Now, we get to continue our annual last road trip tradition and snag some 'McVictories' on the way home."
 
'McVictories', are what a Westmont Volleyball player calls a McFlurry, only when eaten after a win like the one on Friday.
 
Hours before the team would plan its trip to McDonalds, a first-set thriller would eventually go Westmont's way after Vanguard was unable to hang onto to a 21-15. After beginning to chip away, Westmont still trailed 23-20, before a pair of VU attacking errors and an ace from Alexis Dennick allowed Westmont to complete an 8-2 run to knot things up at 23.
 
After a Westmont error pulled Vanguard within a point of a first-set win, a kill from Nariah Prescott fought off set-point and drew the Warriors even once more. Then, it was Ceanna O'Loughlin who found the floor on consecutive possessions to pick up a pair of kills, allowing Westmont to officially steal the first set 26-24.
 
In the second set Westmont would go down 12-8 early on, before Malia De Jesus's third ace of the night capped off a 6-2 run to tie it at 14-all. When a block from Camila Cornejo-Farmer and Audrey Hyde gave Westmont a 16-15 advantage, the Lions called timeout to talk things over. Vanguard's final timeout of the second came just moments later, when an emphatic block from Maddie Finnegan sent Westmont into the red-zone leading 20-17.
 
It was McGolpin's turn to call timeout three points later, when a kill, an ace, and a block from Vanguard tied set two at 20-even. Then, strong serving from Rylee Elias put Westmont up 23-21, a kill from Finnegan made it 24-22, and another from Prescott found the floor to give Westmont a 25-22 win in the second.
 
In the third set a kill from Finnegan following a wild rally saved by Alyson Wurster put Westmont up 8-4, with all the momentum in the world laying with Westmont. Or so it seemed, at least, before a thunderous Vanguard block capped off a five-point swing that sent the Warriors into a timeout (9-8, VU).
 
Two sides would trade points from there for several minutes, before Vanguard approached the red-zone leading 19-16. When an attacking error put VU up 21-17, McGolpin called timeout to try and give the Warriors a chance to regain their footing. There would be no successful adjustment in the third, however, with Vanguard forcing a fourth set with a 25-20 win.
 
In a blink Westmont trailed 4-0 in the fourth, with McGolpin's first timeout coming after Vanguard's lead turned into a 9-4 advantage. Westmont momentarily got back within a pair at 15-13, but three more scores from Vanguard sent Westmont into another huddle, this time down 18-13 with a fifth set in sight.
 
Before Vanguard could get too ahead of itself, however, Westmont clawed back to make it 19-18, before a kill from Finnegan tied it 20-20. Vanguard would lead 24-22, before spark-plug Ava Cotton gave Westmont another life with a set-tying kill to make it 24-24. Instead of using Cotton's kill as a launching pad for Westmont, however, a pair of consecutive kills from Vanguard forced Westmont into a fifth set.
 
Westmont would win two of the first three points in set five, only for Vanguard to win five of the set's next six. That left Westmont once again heading into a huddle, this time trailing 6-3 with the clock beginning to tick quickly. Some strong serving and defense from De Jesus kept Westmont in the fight, but when the two switched sides Vanguard still led 8-6. Moments later, another dump-kill from Finnegan knotted things at 8-8, before a Vanguard attacking error gave Westmont a late lead at 9-8.
 
Vanguard then began to have it potentially slip away one play later, when Finnegan grazed a ball off the tape that landed on the floor for her 23rd kill of the night. At that point, Westmont leading 10-8, it was the Lion's turn to call timeout. Back and forth they would continue to go, though, when three consecutive points won by Vanguard forced McGolpin into her final timeout of the evening.
 
Audrey Hyde immediately answered for the Warriors, with her eighth kill tying it once more at 11-11. An outstanding dig from Alyson Wurster kept a play alive just moments later, allowing Vanguard time to commit an attacking error of their own, once again surrendering the lead to Westmont (12-11). One more Vanguard error would make it 13-11 Westmont, with Vanguard now utilizing their final timeout of the night. Up 13-12, Hyde's ninth kill gave Westmont match-point. Then, after what felt like a marathon of a match, one last swing by the Lions went wide, giving Westmont a 15-13 win, a match victory over Vanguard in five.
 
"What made this one special was the fact that we did it on the road," said McGolpin. "We hadn't beat Vanguard since going Division II, and we were joking that beating Vanguard needs to remain a tradition. It is always when Westmont and Vanguard get after it, and of course it's always a little more fun when we can get the job done like we did tonight."
 
Friday's win was Westmont's 55th all-time against Vanguard in 83 tries, and the seventh time they've beaten the Lions in their last 10 matchups.
 
On an individual note, Finnegan's 23 kills were indeed a career-high, while Prescott added 10 of her own and O'Loughlin landed nine. Cornejo-Farmer collected a team-high five blocks on Friday, while Elias led the way with 25 digs. Several of Elias' digs would belong on a highlight reel. Elsewhere, Sierra McClure had 27 assists, while Lily Underwood added 26 of her own.
 
Off the bench, Ava Cotton finished with a career-high seven kills.
 
"Ava Cotton came in and did a nice job," pointed out McGolpin. "She hit a .462 on the night, and then down the stretch in game five, Maddie came through for us on the attacking. It was just a great defensive effort, though. That was the difference in tonight's game."
 
Westmont will wrap things up next week with a pair of matches in Murchison Gym. First up is a date with Dominican next Friday night, with first serve scheduled for 7:30 p.m.