Photo: Tony Leon/ActionWestPhotography.com

WHITTIER, Calif. (Sept. 14, 2022) – Senior outside hitters Franki Piloto (Ontario, Calif. / Pomona Catholic) and Katelyn Popoff (Hacienda Heights, Calif. / Sonora) of the Whittier College volleyball team proved to be too much for the University of Antelope Valley on Tuesday evening, helping the Poets to their second win of the season.

While both players led the Purple & Gold with 11 kills each, Piloto did so with an outstanding .450 attacking percentage for her most efficient outing of the season. Piloto's consistency on the attack especially came in handy in the third set, when the Poets successfully closed out the Pioneers thanks to 15 team kills to just four attacking errors. Both teams traded leads throughout the first two sets, but the Poets' talent and experience shined through in every critical scenario. More importantly, the home team showed an ability to close out matches, a trait that has been hit-and-miss through the first 10 matches of the 2021 campaign. The Poets kept the pressure on the opponent late in the match and ended things on an 8-2 run. While an Antelope Valley attacking error ended the match, a kill from freshman Hailey Presser (Las Vegas, Nev. / Arbor View) helped put the Pioneers on the brink.

Piloto and Popoff each had four of their 11 kills in the Poets' impressive third set. Junior setter Della Trimble (Saratoga, Calif. / West Valley College) also came through with a big third set to help Whittier close out the match. The transfer student earned seven of her 18 assists on the match in the final frame, three of which led to Piloto kills. The Poets' ability to finish points at the net also served them well. Whittier out-blocked Antelope Valley at a 6:1 clip, with Analise Kusleika (Upland, Calif. / Claremont), Xenia Villagomez (Corona, Calif. / Santiago) and Marya Ghafur (Lancaster, Calif. / Fresno Pacific) all earning at least one solo block and one assisted block. Senior libero Madisen Diaz (Hacienda Heights, Calif. / Bishop Amat) kept busy on the defensive end, collecting a team-high 13 digs for the home team, while four different players managed at least five.

Head Coach Chris Duarte-McDermott and the Poets will begin the SCIAC slate on Tuesday, Sept. 21 when they travel to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges, the second-ranked team in Division III according to the latest AVCA poll.

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