FRESNO, Calif. – The Chaminade University women's volleyball team concluded their final mainland road trip of the season Friday, falling to No. 12 and undefeated Fresno Pacific 25-18, 22-25, 25-15, 25-17 at the Special Events Center.
Alizaysha Sopi (Waianae, O'ahu, Hawai'i/Tennessee State University/Kapolei HS) led the Silverswords with a match-high 16 kills while
Audrah Johnson (Nampa, Idaho/Utah State University/Nampa HS) added another 12 as the Silverswords fell to 15-13 overall and 8-3 in the Pacific West Conference.
The loss also ended a remarkable run of 57 consecutive matches won against opponents from the conference's Northern California region with their last defeat being at Notre Dame de Namur on Oct. 30, 2017. It was also their first defeat to Fresno Pacific since October 2014, snapping a stretch of 17 straight victories, which was their longest active winning streak against PacWest opponents.
Despite the loss, the 'Swords are still in control of earning a berth in the upcoming PacWest Championships at their home floor of McCabe Gymnasium in two weeks and are tied with Hawai'i Hilo for the third seed. The top four teams in the standings will qualify for the tournament.
Lillie Hinton (Spicewood, Texas/Lake Travis) contributed with eight kills while
Reina Krueger (Fort Collins, Colo./Liberty Commons) had seven followed by
Tabby Allen (Leander, Texas/Rouse) with six. Allen also had a team-best four blocks and three service aces.
Allexis Iramina (Honolulu/Moanalua) posted her eighth double-double with 23 assists and 10 digs while
Sina Bauer (Bamberg, Bavaria, Germany/Maximillian-von-Montgelas Gymnasium Vilsbiburg) had 16 digs.
Cambria Waites had 13 kills for the Sunbirds, who improved to 22-0, one of the two undefeated squads remaining in NCAA Division II, the other being top-ranked Tampa. Fresno Pacific, ranked No. 12 in the latest AVCA national rankings, also maintained a two-match lead over fellow conference unbeaten Point Loma (8-0).
Chaminade took a 7-3 lead early in the first set but FPU answered with seven straight to overtake them and eventually pulled away to win the opener.
The 'Swords stormed back and tied the match, building as much as an 18-12 lead, then held on as Krueger's kill ended the set.
In the third set, the Sunbirds used another run, this time a string of six straight points to help them take a 2-1 lead.
Fresno Pacific proved too much in the fourth set, breaking an 11-all tie with a 7-2 run to take the match.
The 'Swords were outhit, .287-to-.184, although they did have one more kill (54-to-53) and more assists (49-to-41). The Sunbirds had the statistical advantage in digs, 67-to-62 and blocks, 8-to-5.5.
The Silverswords return home for their regular season finale on Friday, Nov. 14 when they host Menlo College at McCabe Gym, which is also Aloha Senior Night. First serve is set for 6 p.m. with the celebration of the seniors to follow.
