LA MIRADA, Calif. --- Biola Volleyball got better and better as the night went on and Fresno Pacific never quick got their mojo going at all as the Eagles earn their way back into the win column in a 3-0 victory (25-20; 25-17; 25-14).
Bekah Roth, Madison Beebe and Abigail Copeland each had eight kills to lead all players as Biola recorded 38 kills to FPU's 29 in the match. Biola was the far more efficient offense as well, hitting .231 vs. the Sunbirds' .057.
The Eagles got off to a quick start, leading 7-1 in the opening game. Four different Eagles recorded kills in that opening run, signifying just the kind of night it was bound to be with everyone getting a taste of the action.
Biola led by as many as eight and never trailed in the opening set. The Sunbirds made it interesting, however, by tallying three points in a row to fend off multiple BU attempts at set point. Finally, it was a ball obliterated by Beebe that ended the opener in the Eagles' favor.
"Being back at home felt really good," said Beebe. "I think that we were all ready to get back to our home gym and get some wins here!"
It was much more of the same in game two as the Eagles opened up a 9-3 lead to begin the frame, again never trailing. Right after the 9-3 mark Fresno Pacific rattled off wins in six of the next seven rallies to get back within one, but Biola quickly rebounded and would not let FPU back that close ever again.
Just like in game one, FPU staved off a hanful of set points before ultimately a Biola freshman finished it off in Biola's favor, 25-17. This time it was Raegan Tjepkema with the kill. It was one of six on the night for the athletic middle blocker. Uncharacteristically, Tjepkema was less accurate than normal, chalking up a team-high four attack errors and hitting just .111. She made up for that with three blocks and a pair of aces on the night.
Set three saw the strongest start of them all for this Eagles' team, seeing BU go up 8-1 and eventually 12-2 on the visitors. FPU battled for a bit, getting as close as six points at 13-7, but the Eagles' well-rounded offense eventually proved too much.
Once again it was a freshman who stepped up and earned the set point, and in this case match point. This time it was Jillian Gallarda, who only played in the final game and was successful on one of her two attack attempts.
"I was so stoked for Jillian! That final kill was so awesome," said Beebe. "Everyone played so well tonight and really gave it their all. It was so fun to get to play alongside all of them! I'm really looking forward to carrying the momentum we finished this match with into our game tomorrow against APU."
Other notables for the Eagles is the big difference in service aces. Biola had eight aces land in and only saw two fall to the floor for FPU. Vanessa Garcia, Marissa Price and Tjepkema had two apiece.
Sami Hover led the defensive effort with 20 digs in the three-setter. She now is up to 12 20+ matches this season, including 20 or more in each of the last four times out.
Biola improves to 13-10 overall and 10-5 in PacWest Conference play with Friday's victory. Saturday night is the biggest match Chase Gym has seen so far this season as BU hosts rivals Azusa Pacific with five Cornerstone Cup points on the line. APU won the first matchup, 3-1, and the Cougars come into Saturday night's match sitting alone in first place in the PacWest at 14-2.
