THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — Cal Lutheran women's volleyball won the first set, but No. 21 La Verne answered with three straight and took the match on Friday night. Scores of the match were 25-18, 13-25, 22-25, and 23-25.

Before the match, the Regals celebrated their graduating class of Alysha Buffini, Amy Buffini, and Sadie Peete. 

It was a balanced attack from the Regals as Kira Mortensen had eight kills, Peete was next with seven, and Tarin Rueckert had six. Tess Holbert helped facilitate the ball with 23 assists and added 10 digs for a double-double. She was all over the court and added five kills, four block assists, and three aces. 

Defensively, Mortensen controlled the net with seven block assists and Caitlin Murphy tied Holbert with four. Buffini led the backline with 20 digs. 

The teams went back and forth to start the first set. The Regals made their move midway through the set. Already up 10-9, they scored six straight points and took a big lead. Holbert served two aces and Alex Hayes and Caitlin Murphy combined for a block. The Regals controlled the rest of the set and looked for the upset. 

The top-25 team bounced back in the second set and doubled up the Regals 12-6. The trend continued as the Leopards went up 16-8 and then evened the match.  The Regals returned the favor in the third set and doubled up the Leopards 10-5. La Verne chipped away at the lead but the Regals were ready and maintained the lead at 15-12. The Leopards crawled all the way back and the set would be tied at 17. They came all the way back, went up 22-20, and took a 2-1 match lead. The fourth set was a battle with many ties and lead changes. The Regals were down 19-15 and flipped the script to go up 23-21. The Leopards then responded and took the game and the match. 

The Regals finish the season with a record of 8-8 in conference play and 10-16 overall. They turn their sights toward the offseason and 2024.