CLAREMONT, Calif. — On the road at Pomona-Pitzer tonight, the Cal Lutheran women's volleyball team played to five sets for the fifth time of the fall. Unfortunately, the Regals were on the short side of things, dropping a 3-2 (25-23, 17-25, 22-25, 25-15, 15-12) decision to the Sagehens in Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) action.
An even matchup on paper, American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) No. 23 Cal Lutheran and Pomona-Pitzer battled through five, finishing with very comparable stat sheets. CLU finished with 155 attacks while PP notched 149, producing 55 and 52 kills, respectively. The visiting Violet and Gold hit .161 and the home squad recorded a .168 hitting percentage. Cal Lutheran provided 50 assists and Pomona-Pitzer handed out 48. Defensively, PP edged CLU in digs by one with 67 to 66. The Hens were slightly stronger at the net with 11.0 total blocks to 6.0 and at the service line with 11 aces to seven.
For Cal Lutheran, a trio of players, Sarah Hein and Amanda Roberts and Hope Stewart, contributed 14 kills apiece and Hein and Roberts added 14 and 10 digs, respectively, for double-doubles. Carly Rose Howard also had 14 digs, to share the team-lead with Hein, and Jamie Smith had a 10-dig, 40-assist double-double of her own. Molly Holloway tallied three service aces and Hein added a pair. Additionally, Holloway had one of the two solo blocks, with Paris Dosch recording the other, adding three block assists as well.
CLU nearly pulled off the comeback in the fifth set. With their backs against the wall, the squad chipped away at 6-0, 11-4 and 13-5 deficits to trail by just one, 13-12, but came up just short. The Regals have played three consecutive five-setters in SCIAC action and continue to battle for their first conference win of the fall.
Pomona-Pitzer (4-10, 1-1 SCIAC) was led by Isabel Kelly with a match-leading 17 kills and 15 kills from Julia Zwaal. Jessica Finn handed out 28 assists and Natalie Martin tallied 23 digs to lead all players.
Cal Lutheran (4-8, 0-3 SCIAC) continues league play at home on Friday, Sept. 22 against Occidental at 7:00 p.m. inside the Gilbert Arena.
Box Score: PP 3, CLU 2
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Release by Tracy L. Olson, Sports Information Director
