HONOLULU — Ella Schoene delivered an efficient offensive performance Saturday evening, hitting .500 with nine kills as the Hawaiʻi Pacific University women's volleyball team fell to Westmont College in four sets at the HPU Shark Tank, 25-21, 22-25, 25-19, 25-18.
The Sharks (2-13, 1-8 PacWest) responded to an opening-set loss with a strong second-set performance, recording 18 kills and hitting .378 to even the match before the Warriors (8-9, 5-4 PacWest) secured the final two sets.
Sophia Cooper led HPU with 13 kills, while Schoene recorded nine kills on 14 attempts with just two errors. Alayna Grinstead also finished with nine kills, and Mia Ferdinand contributed six kills and five blocks, including one solo.
Jordyn McCutcheon directed the Sharks' offense with 38 assists and 11 digs for a double-double. Taylor Kaoihana led the defense with 17 digs, while Mayah Nakasato added 11.
HPU finished with 52 kills and a .179 hitting percentage, compared to Westmont's 51 kills and .228 hitting percentage. The Sharks held a 54-48 advantage in digs, while the Warriors recorded 11 blocks and 11 service aces.
The opening set featured several momentum swings as HPU battled back from an early deficit. Trailing 11-8, the Sharks put together a five-point stretch to take a 13-11 lead, highlighted by a kill from Ferdinand and a block by Ferdinand and Alohalani Chun. Westmont responded with five consecutive points to regain control at 16-13. HPU narrowed the deficit to 23-21 behind kills from Ferdinand and Chun before the Warriors closed out the set, 25-21.
The Sharks answered in the second set with their strongest offensive performance of the night. After trailing 9-7, HPU fought back to tie the score at 11 and eventually took a 15-14 advantage. The Sharks built their lead to 20-17 behind consecutive kills from Grinstead and extended it to 23-18. Ferdinand delivered a kill to reach set point before Cooper sealed the 25-22 victory. HPU recorded 18 kills with just four errors in the frame.
Westmont opened the third set with a 5-0 run and maintained its advantage throughout. The Warriors extended their lead to 13-6 before the Sharks chipped away, using a service ace from Eliana Barnett and a block by Schoene and Ella Snobar to pull within four at 15-11. HPU later fought off multiple set points behind kills from Cooper, but Westmont claimed the set, 25-19.
The Warriors carried their momentum into the fourth set, jumping ahead 4-0. HPU responded with kills from Schoene and Snobar to narrow the deficit to 8-7, but Westmont extended its lead to 12-7. The Sharks continued to battle, cutting the margin to 18-15 before the Warriors pulled away for the 25-18 victory.
Chun added six kills and two block assists for HPU, while Snobar contributed three kills on six attempts without an error, hitting .500. The Sharks also received six service aces from six different players.
Westmont was led by Audrey Hyde, who finished with a match-high 22 kills while hitting .386. Camila Cornejo-Farmer added nine kills and seven block assists, while Malia de Jesus recorded a team-high 15 digs.
