By: Hope Hensley
September 18, 2026
SAN RAFAEL, Calif. — The Westmont Warriors women's volleyball team pushed Dominican (CA) to the limit on Friday night, taking a 2–1 match lead before falling in a five-set battle (23–25, 25–18, 25–17, 19–25, 13–15) at the Conlan Center.
Match Breakdown
Dominican struck first in a tightly contested opening set, edging out the Warriors 25–23. Westmont responded with dominant performances in sets two and three. Behind balanced offense and stingy defense, the Warriors surged to a 25–18 win in the second set and kept the momentum going with a 25–17 victory in the third to take a 2–1 match advantage.
The Penguins rallied on their home floor in the fourth frame, hitting .244 to take a 25–19 win and force a deciding fifth set. In a final frame that saw five tied scores and two lead changes, Dominican pulled ahead late to secure the 15–13 win.
Audrey Hyde led the Warriors' attack with a team-high 15 kills, while Valerie Coward added 11 kills and three block assists. Middle blocker Jordan Weston anchored the net defense with a match-high nine total blocks (two solo, seven assists) to go along with nine kills. On the backline, Alyson Wurster registered a team-high 18 digs, closely followed by Rylee Elias (17) and Sierra McClure (16). McClure also directed the offense with 25 assists. Ceanna O'Loughlin provided a spark off the bench in the final frame, converting two kills on five swings.
- Key Stats: Westmont out-killed Dominican 62–47 overall and held an 88–74 advantage in digs. The Warriors recorded 13.0 total team blocks compared to 14.0 for Dominican.
- Top Performers: Audrey Hyde notched 15 kills and 9 digs. Sierra McClure logged a double-double with 25 assists and 16 digs. Jordan Weston produced 14.5 points behind nine kills and nine total blocks.
Head Coach Ruth McGolpin:
"It's a tough loss tonight. Our passing was actually incredible—Alyson Wurster and Rylee Elias were really strong on the backline—and Jordan Weston played a fantastic game at the net with her blocking. Unfortunately, in the big moments, we just didn't get enough production offensively.
"Ceanna O'Loughlin gave us a great lift off the bench in set five, coming in and swinging hard to give us some productivity. This conference is extremely tough and there is still a long way to go. We have to figure out how to finish those close sets, but one thing is certain: this group is going to keep fighting."
