THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – The Cal Lutheran women's volleyball team gave its homecoming crowd plenty to cheer about Saturday afternoon, taking down Chapman 3-1 (25-22, 21-25, 25-21, 25-22) at Gilbert Arena.
The Regals (12-7) celebrated Homecoming with a hard-fought conference victory in front of alumni and families, improving to 8-1 in SCIAC play. Cal Lutheran outhit the Panthers .225 to .194 and held the advantage in kills (62-52) and blocks (13-11).
Four Regals recorded double-digit kills, led by
Kennedy Smith and
Cienna Alvarez with 14 apiece.
Tarin Rueckert added 12 kills and a match-high seven blocks, while
Emily Ford also recorded 12 kills.
Makenna Kawamura dished out a career-high 33 assists, and
Keegan Corley anchored the defense with 26 digs and added three service aces.
The opening set was a back-and-forth battle before Cal Lutheran found its rhythm late. Trailing 14-12, the Regals erupted for a 9-2 run to take a five-point lead. Rueckert started the surge with a kill, followed by a block from Alvarez and kills from
Reese Balagot,
Aby Tibesar, Alvarez and Ford. Chapman continued to battle, but Smith delivered two late kills, including the set-winner, to give Cal Lutheran a 25-22 victory.
Chapman responded in the second set, building an early advantage and maintaining control for much of the frame. The Panthers led 23-15 before the Regals made one final push, stringing together five consecutive points behind three kills from Ford and two from Rueckert. The rally brought Cal Lutheran within three, but Chapman closed out the set 25-21 to even the match.
The Regals answered in the third, opening with a 4-1 lead behind a block from Ford and Tibesar and kills from Alvarez and Smith. The teams traded points throughout the set, with Chapman briefly taking a 15-14 advantage. With the score tied at 18, Cal Lutheran took control. Tibesar recorded two kills and a solo block before Smith added a kill, Corley delivered a service ace, and Ford and Rueckert teamed up for a block. Ford then finished the set with a kill to secure the 25-21 win and put the Regals one set away from victory.
The fourth set brought more of the same, as neither team could pull away for long. Down 12-11, Cal Lutheran scored five straight points, highlighted by back-to-back aces from Corley. Chapman responded to take a 21-19 lead, but the Regals had one more run in them. Three consecutive kills from Alvarez helped fuel a 6-1 closing stretch, while Ford and Tibesar added a crucial block. A Chapman error sealed the 25-22 set victory and the 3-1 match win for the Regals.
Cal Lutheran hits the road Tuesday, October 20, traveling to Roberts Pavilion for a 7 p.m. rematch against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps. The Regals opened SCIAC play with a five-set victory over the Athenas and will look to complete the season sweep as the conference schedule enters its second half.
