Volleyball sweeps Whittier behind Lumsden’s 17 kills

ORANGE, Calif. – The Chapman University volleyball team earned its 12th sweep of the season over the visiting Whittier College Poets earlier this evening 25-20, 25-23, 25-19. Sophomore Jessi Lumsden led the Panthers with 17 kills in the effort.

Chapman took an early 2-0 lead before the Poets fought back to take a 6-3 lead with the help of a couple of kills from Whittier sophomore Katelyn Popoff. At 7-5, the Panthers scored four in a row to regain the lead. The Poets answered again with the help of sophomore Kathea Schamblin to go up 12-10.

Chapman then went on an 8-1 run to take a six-point lead and force a Whittier timeout. At set point, the Poets fought back to score three more points before junior Mavis Lui slammed down a kill to help Chapman win the first set.

The second set was an even match, with the Panthers keeping a steady lead until the middle of the set. A five-point run put Chapman up 21-14. The two sides traded a couple of points before Whittier put up four in a row to make the score 23-20 in favor of Chapman.

Sophomore Sophie Srivastava put down a kill to set up the Panthers' first set point, but kills from junior Abby Salmon and senior Aubrey Claires and a service ace brought Whittier back within a point. On the next play, the referees could not decide whether a Chapman kill was tipped, forcing a replay. Lumsden smacked down a kill with confidence to end the second set 25-23.

The Panthers jumped out to a 10-2 lead in the third set before Whittier scored a couple to make the deficit 10-4. The two sides traded points until the Poets put up four in a row to make the score 16-13. Keeping it close until the final points, Chapman scored three in a row to take the third set 25-19.

Srivastava tallied her 11th triple-double of the season with 13 kills, 13 assists and 11 digs. She also put up five blocks while senior Nayelli Munoz was just behind with four blocks. Lumsden added six digs and two assists to her 17 kills. Freshman Cat Helgeson nearly tallied a double-double with 21 digs and nine assists.

The Panthers head to Caltech next Friday before returning home to host Pomona-Pitzer on Saturday, Nov 2 at 4 p.m. on Senior Night.

by Katie Bell
Sports Information Assistant

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