By Jacob Norling
September 24, 2025
 
(SANTA BARBARA, Calif.) Westmont Volleyball (6-5, 1-0) pushed the Chaminade Silverswords (7-7, 1-0) beyond the 25-point mark on three occasions this Wednesday night, but the Warriors were only able to take one of those three momentum-shifting games. Those two losses, which followed a calmer first-set win by the visitors, led to an eventual win for the Silverswords in four sets.
 
"We told the team, 'you can't be afraid to lose'," said Westmont head coach Ruth McGolpin. "Down the stretch we have to stay aggressive, we have to get after it. No roll shots. No tip shots. You have to bang the ball.
 
"That was the difference tonight, we just got timid down the stretch. Still, we were right there. It was the first time we'd ever taken a set off of Chaminade, and I loved that we came back after going down 2-0. That's a good sign, but when you go up against a team with talent like this, you just can't back down. You can never get comfortable."
 
Westmont tried to find comfort and settle in during the first set, and challenged the Silverswords to an 18-18 tie as the game entered its final stretch. Then, two kills from CUH and an error from Westmont let the Swords jump out to a 21-18 lead they'd never surrender. Eventually, a kill from Audrah Johnson gave CUH a 25-20 win to open the night.
 
The second set might have been the most heartbreaking for the home bench on Wednesday, as the Warriors led 17-14, 23-21, 24-23, 25-24, and 26-25. After their 26^th score, however, the Warriors would surrender three consecutive points to the road team, allowing Chaminade to come away with a gut-wrenching 28-26 win.
 
Still, the Warriors proved to be willing to risk heartbreak again, going toe-to-toe with Chaminade to the brink in a third set. Westmont fell down 20-16, but rather than rolling over, a resilient Warrior group rallied to tie things up at 21. Following a 24-24 tie, a service error from Chaminade gave Westmont a one-point advantage. Then, a service ace from Ceanna O'Loughlin gave the Warriors a chance to roar, and more importantly, a chance to play a fourth set.
 
In the end, however, instead of chasing down a fifth set, it was the Silverswords chasing down the Warriors in a game that Westmont just could not put away. The Warriors led 19-16, 22-20, and 23-21, but Chaminade would get the final laugh after scoring six of the match's final nine points. The final blow came following a 25-25 tie, when back-to-back CUH kills cemented a 27-25 win, and a 3-1 match victory for the Swords.
 
Individually, Maddie Finnegan and O'Loughlin each landed 15 kills, while Camila Cornejo-Farmer had 11 to go along with a .579 attack percentage. Rylee Elias led Westmont with 17 digs, while Lily Underwood provided a season-high 30 assists.
 
"Lexi and Cam really got in sync as the night went on," said McGolpin. "There were several times when Lily was able to set up Cam, and Cam just went after it. Maddie did a good job again tonight. Maddie and Rylee anchored us again in that department."
 
McGolpin continued, "I don't think our passing was very crisp, and it had been before tonight. There's just a few things here and there that can't happen. We asked the team at the end of the night, whether you're a coach, or a player, what are two things you could have done differently down the stretch? We need to be able to answer that, and then we have to learn from it.
 
"We have got to learn from it."
 
Westmont returns to the floor on Monday night in Santa Barbara, when the Warriors play host to the Hawaii Pacific Sharks. First serve is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.