On Sept. 7, women’s volleyball played their first home game against Azusa Pacific University and won 3-2 after a hard-fought battle.

SCORES

By the end of the game, the Eagles totaled 61 kills, 12 aces, 14 blocks and 61 digs. Sophomore right side Anna Aubele led offense with 20 kills followed by senior middle blocker Abigail Copeland with eight kills and eight blocks. The star of defense, redshirt senior setter Abby Brewster, had 51 assists and 11 digs. Twin freshmen defense specialists Bri and Bethany Bellfi contributed to defense with 11 digs.

LOSE TWICE, WIN THRICE

The first set started off with Biola taking an early lead. However, APU quickly caught up and overtook them, maintaining at least a five-point lead over the Eagles for an ending score of 20-25. The Cougars scored the first point in the second set, but things started to look up for Biola at first as the girls kept ahead, despite trading back points. Finally, APU came out on top once more, winning the second set 23-25.

Determined not to let their rivals win, the team worked hard to come ahead of the Cougars early on. Unable to catch up, APU lost its first set to Biola 25-21. The fourth set saw a similar story. Early on, the Cougars could not match the ferocity of the Eagles. As the game progressed, they slowly gained traction, but ultimately ended up losing the set 25-23. In the fifth and final set, the Biola girls were eager to secure the victory. Starting off strong with five kills in a row, the home team was set up for success. They maintained their lead and eventually ended the set 15-11.

The Eagles beat the Cougars 3-2.

Women’s volleyball (4-4) will face off against Fresno Pacific University in Fresno, California on Sept. 10 at 1 p.m. Footage and stats from the game are located on the Biola Athletics website.