THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – The Cal Lutheran Regals volleyball team lost its home opener to the Westmont Warriors 3-0 (25-22, 25-18, 25-9) Wednesday night inside Gilbert Arena.

The Warriors (13-1) are the No. 5 ranked team in the NAIA standings. CLU is now 2-3 on the early season. After the first set, newcomers and freshmen entered the game and gained valuable experience.

Cal Lutheran got contributions from Hope Stewart who led the team with nine kills and added three digs. Sarah Hein had the second most kills on the team with five and also tallied four digs. Amanda Roberts and Molly Holloway both added four kills and had seven and two digs, respectively.

Playing in their first collegiate matches for the Violet and Gold was Taylor Johnson, Jennifer Kent and Paige Poggione. Kent recorded three assists, two digs and one block assist.

Westmont's Libby Dahlberg and Samantha Neely led the Warriors with 10 kills each. Dahlberg recorded a .667 hitting percentage while Neely had a .529 clip. Dahlberg and Neely both added three block assists. The Warrior's Amy Buffham kept the offense going with 20 assists. Brooklynn Cheney protected the back line and tallied 10 digs.

Cal Lutheran continues the season at home as the Regals host the Cal Lu Fornia Invitational Friday and Saturday. CLU will start the invitational with UC Santa Cruz Friday at 3 p.m. The squad will take on Whitworth (Wash.) in the nightcap.

Box Score: WC 3, CLU 0

CLU Instagram: http://instagram.com/clusports#
CLU Twitter: https://twitter.com/clusports
CLU Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/clusports
Hashtags: #clusports #ownthethrone #goregals #gokingsmen #theSCIAC #ncaad3

Release by Ryan Jorgenson, Assistant Sports Information Director