HONOLULU – Hawai'i Pacific University kept the match close, but could not overcome the second place team in the PacWest Conference as Biola swept HPU in three sets on Wednesday night in James Castle Gym at St. Andrew's Priory.
The Eagles (15-5, 11-2) handled the Sharks (5-12, 4-7) 25-18, 25-19, 25-23.
The Sharks hit just .061 for the match, with 2.0 team blocks. Biola his .291 and collected 11.0 team blocks.
HPU sophomore Camryn Collie of El Dorado Hills, Calif./Oak Ridge recorded a match-high 11 kills to go with two blocks. Senior middle hitter
Carson Pyle of Houston, Texas/Memorial posted eight kills with a team-high .312 attack percentage and one block.
The Eagles were led by Karly Dantuma with nine kills and a .529 attack percentage. Sabrina Winslow added seven kills with three blocks. Bekah Roth led the Eagles with six blocks.
The Eagles never trailed in collecting the first set win. BU opened with a 10-5 run and rolled until Dantuma ended the set with a kill for the 25-18 win.
HPU responded in the second set, jumping out to a 10-6 advantage with a Collie kill. The Sharks extended their lead to 12-9 before BU took advantage of a service error to start a 7-1 run to take a 16-13 lead they would not relinquish. The Eagles closed the set on an HPU error to win 25-19.
The final set was a strong battle, with the set tied nine times and the lead changing hands six. HPU seemed to have the upper hand in building a 17-13 lead on a Pyle kill. Then Biola roared back, posting a 5-2 run to pull back to within one at 19-18.
HPU and BU exchanged points with the Sharks going up 21-19 before an Eagle 3-1 to tie the set. HPU followed with an ace from junior
Amanda Acosta of Exeter, Calif./Extra Union to lead 23-22 only to have Biola close the set and match with a 3-0 run capped by a Dantuma kill.
The loss started a three-game homestand for the Sharks, who return to play on Friday when Concordia Irvine visits the Priory and Castle Gym. First serve is slated for 7 p.m.
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