Riverside, Calif. - On the first day of the La Sierra University Invitational, the Golden Eagles split their two matches of the day. The day started with a straight set win over the University of St. Katherine, before dropping the final match of the day, also in straight sets, to #6 Westmont College. La Sierra will return for two more matches, on the second and final day of the invitational tournament.
La Sierra def. St. Katherine, 3-0 (25-18, 25-21, 25-23)
In the Golden Eagles win over the Firebirds, it was Kiana Krumm who led all players with a match-high 16 kills. She was joined by outside hitter, Ashlin Orosco, who finished with 10 kills and Michele Mendizabal who added nine kills in the winning effort. As a team, the Golden Eagles hit a blistering .371, with a total of 45 kills against only nine errors on 97 attempts.
Setter Angala Jensen directed the offense and finished with 43 assists, while Emily Morgan anchored the defense with 12 digs and got some help from Kiana Krumm who contributed 11 digs of her own.
#6 Westmont def. La Sierra, 3-0 (25-21, 25-23, 25-19)
Westmont completed a perfect 2-0 day with a straight set win over the Golden Eagles. La Sierra nearly stormed back to steal the second set, after trailing 24-18, but the closest they got was to within one point of tying the score at 24 apiece. After escaping with the Set 2 win and a 2-0 lead in the match, the Warriors used a 7-0 run to take control of Set 3, after finding themselves in a 3-0 deficit to start the set. Once the Warriors gained control they didn't relinquish it and cruised to their fifth win of the season.
Krumm once again led the team with 10 kills and was the only player to reach double-figures in that category. Orosco finished with nine kills in addition to Mendizabal's eight kills. Jensen tallied 34 assists, while Morgan led the team with eight digs.
Westmont's, Hali Galloway led all players with a total of 11 kills in the match.
The Golden Eagles record now stands at 3-3 on the season. They will look to improve on that tomorrow when they face Aquinas College (10am) in their first match of the day, before closing the tournament out against The Master's University, at 4pm. Both contests will be rematches from games played last week at the Hope International Summer Slam. The Golden Eagles lost to both opponents last week as they will look to turn the table on their home court.
