MONTECITO, Calif. --- Biola Volleyball's 10-match winning streak came to an end on Wednesday night, as the No. 25 Eagles fell to Westmont 3-1 (25-21, 14-25, 15-25, 21-25) at Murchison Gymnasium.
Biola took the opening set before Westmont responded with three straight to hand the Eagles their first loss since Aug. 28 against Nebraska-Kearney at the Dallas Classic. The result moved BU to 11-3 overall and 6-1 in PacWest play.
The Eagles opened the match efficiently, recording 17 kills and hitting .311 in the first set. With the score tied at 13, a Juliana Van Ommering service ace and back-to-back kills from Haylee LaFontaine helped Biola build a 16-13 advantage. Westmont later pulled within one at 21-20, but Van Ommering accounted for each of BU's final four points with four kills to secure the 25-21 win.
Westmont answered with its best offensive set of the night, hitting .609 without an attack error in the second. Biola remained within three at 16-13, but the Warriors pulled away down the stretch and scored the final six points to even the match with a 25-14 victory.
Biola jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the third behind a Natalie Ojeisekhoba kill and Lexi Lambert ace. Westmont quickly worked its way back and, after the teams were tied at 7-7, the Warriors put together a five-point run to gain control. Westmont went on to take the frame 25-15 and move ahead 2-1.
The Eagles continued to battle in the fourth. Westmont led 22-16 before Biola mounted one final push, scoring four straight points behind an Ashlyn Beebe ace, a Savannah Simpson kill and a block from Simpson and Emily Page to cut the deficit to 22-20. The Warriors stopped the run and eventually closed out the match 25-21.
Van Ommering led the Eagles with 17 kills on 42 attempts for a .286 hitting percentage and added six digs. LaFontaine followed with 12 kills, while Ojeisekhoba provided a spark with six kills on 11 attempts, hitting .455 with two block assists.
Lambert dished out a team-high 16 assists and added seven digs, while Page finished with 15 assists and five digs. Caprice Cooper led the Eagles defensively with 13 digs and added two service aces, while Sophia Knevelbaard collected seven digs.
Westmont finished with a .341 hitting percentage compared to Biola's .140 and held a 14-5 advantage in total blocks. The Eagles did record seven service aces to the Warriors' five.
Biola returns home Friday, Oct. 2, to host Vanguard.
