Leopard Win Streak Snapped At Whittier
The University of La Verne's season-high six-match win streak came to an abrupt end as the Leopards fell victim to Whittier College in three sets by scores of 25-13, 25-17 and 25-19 in SCIAC action Tuesday night at Graham Athletic Center in Whittier.
Coming off a 4-0 effort at its own Leopard Invitational, La Verne looked to continue its momentum in its return to conference play but found a Poet squad that proved ready for the challenge in turning back the Leos.
Whittier (7-13, 3-4 SCIAC) jumped out to a 7-1 lead on the Leopards in the first set and extended its margin to 15-5 en route to claiming a 25-13 set triumph. In the second frame, the Leos and Poets battled to a 12-12 tie before the home team went on a 4-0 run to grab a 16-12 advantage. Leading 16-14, Whittier embarked on another 4-0 spurt to lead 20-14 on its way to an eventual 25-17 verdict to seize a 2-0 set lead.
La Verne faced an uphill battle in the third set as consecutive attack errors resulted in an early 8-3 deficit. The Poets extended their lead to 16-7 and held a 22-13 advantage before closing out the match on a kill from Lauren Whiteman.
Alyssa Sialiaris posted 11 kills with teammate Alayna Rigo adding 10 to lead the Poets. Kayla Cribbs totaled 7 kills to pace La Verne.
The Leopards dropped to 14-8 overall and 4-3 in conference play and will return to action Tuesday, October 18 at Cal Lutheran.
