SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – In the sixth and final match of a grueling six-game road swing to begin the 2021 fall campaign, the No. 15-ranked Corban University volleyball team had to dig extra deep for a gritty five-set victory over No. 9 Westmont College on Saturday afternoon (25-23, 15-25, 20-25, 25-12, 15-10).
The Navy and Gold rallied to stun the hometown Warriors on their home court, sweeping the two-match series between the two NAIA top-25 squad and leaving California with a perfect 6-0 record.
"What a battle!" said head coach Kim McLain. "Westmont put our backs against the wall by serving us tough in the third set, which caused our offense to break down. I was proud of how the team turned it around and made adjustments in the fourth and fifth sets, showing tenacity and grit!"
In contrast to yesterday's lopsided first set, the opening stanza of Saturday afternoon's match was a nail-biter. Battling back and forth throughout the game, the two squads were at one point deadlocked at 23. A clutch kill from Avari Ridgway and a ball handling miscue from Westmont helped the Navy and Gold earn a crucial game-one triumph.
Westmont got out to a strong start in the second game of the contest, however, going on an 9-1 run to begin the set. Corban battled back, but was unable to overcome the early deficit, falling to Westmont by a 25-15 tally to knot the match at a game apiece.
The hometown team rode that momentum to another victory in game three, forcing the Navy and Gold to play from behind for the first time in the 2021 fall campaign. Corban responded in resounding fashion, however, storming back for a dominant 25-12 win in set four, forcing a fifth game.
The two Warrior squads battled their way to a tie at seven in the deciding game, but Corban mustered a critical 7-1 run to pull away, winning the match and sweeping the weekend series.
Once again, Rylee Troutman notched a career high in kills in the triumph, collecting 19 to lead the Navy and Gold's offense. She also set a new career best in digs, ending the night with 17 to help the squad defensively.
Avari Ridgway (10 kills), Ally Tow (nine kills), and Sarena Bartley (eight kills) were the other key offensive contributors, while Jadyn Mullen (24 assists) and Ciarra Judson (23 assists) facilitated the attack.
Leading the defensive effort was Kealani Ontai, who tied with Westmont's Phoebe Minch for a game-high 23 digs.
Thrown immediately into the fire with six challenging road matches—four of which were against foes who were either ranked or receiving votes in the national coaches' poll—Corban finishes its six-match non-conference road trip without a loss.
Meanwhile, after also leaving the Hope International University (HIU) Summer Slam with a perfect 4-0 record, Westmont ends the weekend with a pair of home losses. For context, Westmont only lost twice at home in the 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020 seasons combined.
Corban (6-0) will now have a pair of home events prior to the launch of Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) competition on September 3.
Corban will host Linn-Benton Community College on Wednesday in a scrimmage, before officially opening its home slate on Saturday (August 28) against crosstown rival Willamette University.
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