HONOLULU, Hawaii --- The Biola volleyball team outlasted Chaminade in five sets (25-22, 26-24, 23-25, 17-25, 15-10) Thursday night at McCabe Gymnasium. After taking the first two sets, the Eagles held off a Chaminade comeback to secure the 3-2 victory and improve to 13-4 overall and 8-2 in PacWest play.
Chaminade jumped out to an early 5-2 lead in the opening set, but Biola responded with five consecutive points to take a 7-5 advantage. The Eagles continued to build their lead, extending it to 17-11 before the Silverswords began to close the gap. A
Savannah Simpson kill put Biola ahead 23-20, and a
Sophia Knevelbaard service ace brought up set point. Chaminade pulled within two at 24-22, but Simpson delivered the final kill to secure the 25-22 victory.
The second set proved to be the closest of the night, featuring nine ties and five lead changes. Chaminade controlled much of the early action, building a 16-12 advantage before Biola began to chip away. A
Madison Moore kill and a
Caprice Cooper service ace helped the Eagles take an 18-17 lead.
Neither team could create separation down the stretch. With the score tied at 22-22, back-to-back kills from
Haylee LaFontaine gave Biola set point. Chaminade answered with two consecutive points to even the score at 24-24, but
Hannah Guzzetti and LaFontaine delivered consecutive kills to give the Eagles a 26-24 win and a 2-0 match lead.
Chaminade responded in the third set, jumping out to a 9-5 advantage and maintaining its lead for much of the frame. The Silverswords extended their advantage to 20-14 before Biola began to rally. The Eagles scored six of the next seven points to cut the deficit to 21-20, with kills from Simpson and Moore helping fuel the comeback. Biola pulled within one again at 24-23, but Chaminade held on for the 25-23 victory.
The Silverswords carried that momentum into the fourth set. Chaminade took an early 9-4 lead and continued to pull away, extending its advantage to 17-11. With Biola struggling to find its offensive rhythm, Chaminade closed out the set 25-17 to force a decisive fifth.
The Eagles built an early 5-2 lead in the fifth set, with Simpson contributing a service ace during the opening stretch. Chaminade answered with five consecutive points to move ahead 7-5, but Biola quickly regained control. The Eagles scored three straight points, capped by a kill from
Payton Tully, to take an 8-7 lead.
The teams traded points before Biola began to pull away. The Eagles built a 12-9 advantage and continued their push down the stretch. A Tully kill extended the lead to 13-10, and Moore followed with another to bring up match point.
Alex Strating delivered the final kill off an assist from
Lexi Lambert to complete the 15-10 victory.
Biola outscored Chaminade 10-3 after falling behind 7-5 in the deciding set, hitting .294 in the frame with eight kills against just three attack errors.
LaFontaine led the Eagles offensively with 13 kills and 10 digs, recording a double-double while adding two service aces. Tully followed with 11 kills, while Simpson added 10 kills on an efficient .471 hitting percentage and three block assists.
Lambert finished with 22 assists and 15 digs for a double-double of her own, while
Emmy Page contributed 12 assists and six digs. Cooper anchored the back row with a team-high 25 digs and added two service aces.
Guzzetti led Biola at the net with one solo block and four block assists. As a team, the Eagles finished with 54 kills, 80 digs, seven service aces and eight total blocks.
The victory improved Biola to 13-4 overall and 8-2 in conference play, while Chaminade fell to 10-9 overall and 4-5 in the PacWest.
The Eagles will look to carry their momentum into their next match against Hawaii Pacific on Friday, October 9th at 9 p.m. PT.
