SAN DIEGO, Calif. --- Biola Volleyball entered Wednesday night with an opportunity that had never before been available to the program. One more victory would clinch at least a share of the Eagles' first full-season PacWest Conference championship.

For three sets, Biola put itself in position to get it, but unfortunately it was not meant to be.

The Eagles rallied from an opening-set loss to take a 2-1 advantage in the match, but Point Loma responded over the final two frames and prevailed 3-2 (25-17, 20-25, 20-25, 25-21, 15-11) in front of 678 fans at Golden Gymnasium.

The result closes Biola's regular season at 19-6 overall and 14-4 in PacWest play, and instead guarantees Point Loma at least a share of the conference championship.
After struggling offensively in the first set, Biola looked dramatically different in the next two.

The Eagles collected 18 kills while hitting .341 in the second set, turning a 13-13 tie into a 25-20 victory. Biola carried that momentum into the third, hitting .317 and creating separation with a pair of extended runs on the way to another 25-20 win.

That left the Eagles one set away from a victory that would have given them the number one seed in the league. Point Loma refused to allow it.

The fourth set featured seven ties and four lead changes before the Sea Lions broke a 19-19 deadlock and scored six of the final eight points to force the deciding fifth game.

Neither side could separate early in the finale. Savannah Simpson helped Biola establish a 3-2 advantage, and the teams remained even deep into the set before reaching an 8-8 tie.
Point Loma found the decisive run from there.

The Sea Lions scored seven of the match's final 10 points, including consecutive points to move ahead 10-8 and another three-point push that stretched the margin to 14-10. Biola fought off one match point behind a Hannah Guzzetti kill before Point Loma closed out the contest.

Juliana Van Ommering delivered one of her strongest all-around performances of the season in the loss, finishing with a match-high 20 kills, 11 digs and two service aces for a double-double.
Simpson continued an outstanding offensive season with 13 kills on 26 attempts and just two errors, good for a .423 hitting percentage. Payton Tully added 11 kills, while Caprice Cooper led the defensive effort with 17 digs.

The defeat ends Biola's chance at sharing the regular-season championship, but not its season.

For the first time the Eagles are headed to the PacWest Volleyball Championships.

Biola will make its inaugural tournament appearance Nov. 13-14 at the Freed Center in Costa Mesa, hosted by Vanguard. Four teams will compete for the PacWest's automatic berth into the NCAA Division II West Regional, with final seeding and Biola's semifinal opponent to be determined following the conclusion of the remaining regular-season matches.