By Kay Hurd
La Verne Athletics Communications
LA VERNE, Calif. — The University of La Verne volleyball team defeated Union (NY) and Neumann on day two of the Pacific Coast Classic to finish 3-1 on the tournament.
Game 1: La Verne 3, Union (NY) 0
Marisa Rojo and Cassie Thompson combined for 23 kills to lead the University of La Verne volleyball team to a 25-17, 25-20, 25-17 win over Union (N.Y.) on Saturday afternoon at Sports Science Athletics Pavilion.
Rojo, a junior transfer from San Francisco State, has hit .308 through the first three games of the season and is already making her presence felt. She had 12 kills on .417 hitting and added eight digs for good measure. "Marisa has been a dominant addition for us," La Verne head coach Jenna Panatier said. "She adds depth and power to the outside."
Thompson was even more efficient, knocking down 11 kills on 21 swings. Thompson was solid throughout the match and provided key swings to keep the toes on their heels. The senior picked up four blocks in the third set and solidified the win for the Leopards.
After a tough loss to Trinity (Texas) last night, La Verne bounced back in a resounding fashion. The Leopards hit .353 as a team while committing just 10 errors and held the Dutchwomen to just .053 hitting.
Delaney Lynch, who had been struggling to find her groove in the early going, put on a clinic in the second set. Lynch showed off her big swing with a dominating kill followed by a kill with her off-hand. Three straight attack errors prior led to a cushion that Union could not erase and La Verne closed out the set, 25-20.
"Today's match was a good win. Union has a very strong program and their defense kept us on our toes." said Panatier.
Game 2: La Verne 3, Neumann 0
Tiffany Mancuso and the University of La Verne volleyball team rode 15 service aces to cruise to a 25-14, 25-15, 25-13, win over Neumann in the final game of the tournament.
The Leopards registered nine of the 15 aces in the first set to establish the tone early. Mancuso led La Verne with five and Lauren Bonaldo showed strong potential with three off the bench.
The Knights could not get a good rhythm going and hit a meager .023 on the match, while the Leopards showed off their depth with Tessa Michalosky and Cherene Uale adding six and five kills, respectively.
La Verne returns to action on Friday when they travel to Thousand Oaks for the Posada Royale Invitational, hosted by Cal Lutheran, to take on No. 6 Washington-St. Louis.
