The Biola volleyball team traveled to Costa Mesa, Calif. on Nov. 10 to face the Vanguard University Lions in the Eagles’ final regular season match. After a rough first set loss, Biola bounced back and swept the next three sets to give them a final Golden State Athletic Conference record of 13-3 and an overall record of 23-9.
Vanguard gave the Eagles a challenge in both their meetings this season, as the first time the two teams faced off, at Biola on Oct. 4, the Eagles barely escaped with a five-set victory.
Biola knew they would have to work for the win, as they traveled away from the comfort of their home gym. The first set reflected the home-court advantage Vanguard had, as the Eagles seemed flustered and out of sorts the whole set. It did not help that the Lions finished the set with a fantastic .400 kill percentage while Biola only had a .103 kill percentage. All of those factors translated to a 25-17 first set win for the home Lions.
In the second set, Vanguard shot themselves in the foot as their offense stagnated, culminating in a final kill percentage of .000 due to nine kills and nine errors. The Eagles started off on fire, jumping out to a quick 7-0 lead. The Lions fought back, making Biola’s lead only three points as late as 23-20, but could not complete the comeback and the Eagles finished with a score of 25-22.
The third set went back and forth in terms of who led the set, until a huge 13-3 point run by Biola in the middle of the set gave them a 17-11 advantage. Again, Vanguard fought hard, bringing it to a 21-20 Biola lead before the Eagles grabbed the final four points for a 25-20 win.
In similar fashion to the previous two sets, Biola went out of the gates firing on all cylinders, taking an early 12-3 lead. This set proved the most decisive win for the Eagles on the night, as they went on to win it 25-18.
Sophomore opposite Karly Dantuma led Biola’s attackers with 11 kills while sophomore outside Hannah van Warmerdam, senior middle Olivia Sorensen and freshman outside Brooke Watts each contributed eight.
The regular season may be finished, but the Eagles have the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics playoffs that start on Nov. 29. If the standings do not change, No. 19 ranked Biola will earn a first-round bye, but the final standings will be announced on Nov. 13 with the last NAIA coaches poll.
