Another week, another two wins for Biola’s undefeated volleyball team.
On Saturday, Biola traveled to San Diego to take on the then fifth-ranked Point Loma Sea Lions. Biola wrapped up the evening by winning with little difficulty, finishing 25-10, 25-18 and 25-17, while holding Point Loma to a minuscule .038 hitting percentage.
The Eagles had not won at Point Loma in almost ten years, and from the first serve, Biola made it clear that the streak was about to end. Biola opened the first game on a 4-0 run, and put away the Sea Lions by winning nine of the final 11 points. Point Loma failed on several occasions to stop Biola from putting up points in bunches; the Eagles had three runs of four or more consecutive points.
Point Loma had its only lead of the night when the team opened the second set at 1-0, but it wouldn’t last long as the Eagles rode the strong serving of freshman hitter Joy Talcott to break an early 4-4 tie. Biola had its strongest hitting in the second set, recording a .353 average. The Eagles again had a very balanced attack, with five players recording ten or more attack attempts led by senior, two-time All-American outside hitter Meghan Warkentin, who piled up eleven kills on 24 attempts.
The Eagles refused to let off the gas as they sped to a 10-3 lead before stalling slightly at 20-11 and letting the Sea Lions claim six of the next eleven points. However, the Eagles would not be denied their 14th straight win, and Maggie McGill put the game away with a kill.
Junior middle blockers Kelsey Christoferson and senior Kristen Peterson had a field day at the net for Biola, each recording one of their strongest matches of the season. Christoferson recorded nine kills in thirteen attempts to finish with a .615 hitting percentage, as well as a dig and two blocks. Peterson rang up five blocks to complement her eight kills and .538 hitting percentage.
On Tuesday, Hope International came to Chase Gymnasium hoping to keep Biola from their second-best start in school history. However, the Lady Eagles would not be denied their 15th straight win, beating Hope 25-17, 25-17 and 25-19.
The Eagles were again led by senior outside hitter Meghan Warkentin, with 12 kills on 19 attempts, but junior setter Abbie Wright and senior Christina Perkins still spread the ball around. For the second straight game Biola recorded five players with ten or more attempts.
Despite the Royals lowly ranking, the Eagles were never able to run away with the match. The first two sets both saw several ties and lead changes before the eventual Biola victory. With the sweep, Biola has now won 30 consecutive sets, and is 45-3 on the season, only dropping games to Indiana Wesleyan and Bellevue.
Kristen Peterson, senior middle blocker, continued her run of impressive starts by recording seven kills and three blocks, while senior outside hitter Jessica Buffum also recorded seven kills despite not playing the third set.
Biola was able to clear off the bench in the third set as every active player saw playing time. With the victory, Biola moves into the hardest part of their schedule, with games against No. 1 Fresno and No. 3 Concordia in the upcoming week.
