LAGUNA NIGUEL, Calif. (Oct. 3, 2023) – Led by the dominant duo of
Mia D'Amato (Bakersfield, Calif. / Garces) and
Xenia Villagomez (Corona, Calif. / Santiago) at the net, the Whittier College women's volleyball team successfully extended their SCIAC winning streak to three games when they ousted Chapman University in a closely-contested five-set game at Chapman on Tuesday evening.
Fresh off of
pacing the Whittier offense at Caltech, D'Amato picked up right where she left off at Chapman, picking up 14 kills on 33 attacks for a hitting percentage of .273. Villagomez was arguably even more dominant on the attack with 13 kills on 27 attempts, accounting for a .333 hitting percentage. However, the real difference in Tuesday night's outcome seemingly came at the net, where the Poets registered 10 total blocks, all of which were assisted. D'Amato led with six, while Villagomez had four herself while sisters
Analise Kusleika (Upland, Calif. / Claremont) and
Brenna Kusleika (Upland, Calif. / Claremont) combined for nine.
Another difference in the match came on each team's serve, though perhaps not in a conventional way. The five-set match had long, drawn-out points, with both teams picking up 102 total digs. However, the Panthers picked up five more service errors than the Poets, and considering how close Tuesday's match was, those points could have easily swayed momentum one way or the other. Meanwhile, the Poets had to overcome adversity multiple times to grind out their third-straight victory, winning the second set in dominant fashion, 25-15, to tie the match at one apiece. The Poets' attack really came into its own over the final stanza of the set, with the visitors registering winning six of the final seven points, with five of those points ending with emphatic kills.
The third set proved to bet the closest-contested set of the five, with Whittier grinding its way to a 25-21 win. Just like the second frame, however, the difference proved to be the Poets' killer instinct in the later stages, with Whittier this time winning five of the final six points to pull away for good. A pair of kills from
Riley DeGroot (Ontario, Calif. / Mt. San Antonio College), and two of her 10 on the match, kickstarted the Poets' final run, and unforced errors from the Panthers lifted the Purple & Gold to a 2-1 lead. However, Whittier would need to overcome adversity once again after an uninspired fourth set, though the Poets more than made up for it with objectively their best fifth-set performance on the season.
The Poets won the final frame, 15-9, but played mistake-free volleyball throughout, picking up nine kills to just one error to the tune of a sterling .471 team hitting percentage in that limited sample size. D'Amato took over in the early portion of the frame, picking up kills on four of Whittier's first seven points. After that, the Poets went on an 8-4 run punctuated by kills from the Kusleika sisters, as well as Villagomez.
Whittier ultimately got the job done with one of its strongest defensive showings of the season.
Reigning SCIAC Defensive Athlete of the Week Nadine Oronoz (Whittier, Calif. / Rio Hondo College) had 26 digs, with DeGroot adding an additional 23. Setters
Jordan Heard (San Dimas, Calif. / San Dimas) and
Morgan Lin (Glendora, Calif. / Glendora) also contributed double-digit digs with 17 and 10 respectively, as well as no fewer than 20 assists apiece. DeGroot, meanwhile, has gone 10-and-10 in seven different matches so far this season.
Head Coach
Chris Duarte-McDermott and the Poets will try to make it four consecutive wins when they host Occidental College on Friday, Oct. 6, in the annual Homecoming game.
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