WHITTIER, Calif. – Dave Jacobs Court gave the Whittier College women's volleyball team plenty to celebrate during its first home weekend of the season.
The Poets split four matches at the 2026 Whittier College Invitational, picking up wins over Pacific Lutheran University and UC Santa Cruz while battling No. 19 Batten University and the University of Puget Sound over two days.
Whittier opened its home schedule Friday morning against a Pacific Lutheran team receiving votes nationally.
After dropping the first set 25-22, the Poets responded in a tight second frame with a 26-24 victory to even the match.
Then came one of Whittier's most dominant sets in recent memory.
The Poets rolled to a 25-5 win in the third before finishing off the match with a 25-21 victory in the fourth to secure the 3-1 win.
Malena The led Whittier with 16 kills on a .351 hitting percentage while adding 18 digs.
Lola Padilla turned in a career performance alongside her, recording a career-high 15 kills while hitting .375.
Whittier finished the match hitting .306 as a team, including 54 kills, while
Alyssa Gonzalez helped anchor the defense with 22 digs.
The Poets returned to the court Friday evening for another tough test against No. 19 Batten.
Whittier stayed close through the opening two sets, falling 25-23 in both, before the nationally ranked Marlins closed out the match in three. The remained productive in the loss, finishing with 12 kills and a .355 hitting percentage.
Whittier returned Saturday and quickly found itself in another lengthy battle, this time against UC Santa Cruz.
The opening set went beyond 25 before the Banana Slugs took it 31-29. Whittier answered with a 25-23 win in the second, but UC Santa Cruz regained the advantage by taking the third 25-21.
With the match on the line, the Poets responded again.
Whittier won the fourth set 25-20 to force a deciding fifth before taking control of the final frame, 15-12, to secure its second five-set victory of the young season.
Senior
Mia D'Amato delivered her best offensive performance as a Poet, setting a new career high with 17 kills while hitting .429. She also contributed five blocks and finished with 20 points.
The matched her with 16 kills and 20 points, while
Morgan Kinser added nine total blocks to help Whittier finish the comeback.
The victory gave the Poets their second win of the invitational and another early-season result in a deciding fifth set.
Whittier closed its home tournament Saturday evening against Puget Sound.
The Loggers took the match in three sets, but the Poets continued to get contributions from throughout the roster. The led Whittier with eight kills, while
Mia Palmer finished with seven and 12 digs.
The weekend moved Whittier through another challenging four-match stretch after opening the year 3-1 at the Pacific Coast Classic.
Through its first two tournament weekends, the Poets have already faced nationally ranked and receiving-votes competition while also earning a pair of five-set victories.
Whittier now heads to the East Coast for three matches in New Jersey beginning Friday, September 18. The Poets open the trip against Kean University before continuing their non-conference schedule over the weekend.
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