LA VERNE, CA – The University of La Verne Leopards looked to rebound after a tough five-set loss Friday night in a Saturday afternoon meeting with the Puget Sound Loggers. Despite winning the first set 25-20, the Loggers took the next three sets, 25-20, 25-22, 25-17.

The Leopards were led by All-Tournament player junior Emily Heldenbrand who finished with 38 assists, 12 digs, one ace, one block, and one dig. Ayana Mier led La Verne with 12 kills to go with three blocks. 

Noelani Soma had an outstanding game collecting 14 digs while notching 10 kills.

The Leopards came out firing, opening the game by winning nine of the first ten points. They held steady through the remainder of the first set and came out up 1-0.

Juniors Kari Esseff and Mier collected seven of La Verne's nine first-set kills. Heldenbrand assisted on eight of those kills. Additionally, sophomore Kelly Yeung tacked on three service aces and six digs. Esseff finished the game with nine kills.

And while the Leopards would go on to lose the match, they didn't go down without a fight. 

In the second set, Puget Sound jumped out to a commanding 10-4 lead which eventually spiraled into a 17-9 deficit for the Leopards. However, after a pair of kills from freshman Ha'ani Untalan and a few mishaps from the Loggers, La Verne saw itself down just one point, 21-20, with a chance to take command of the set. 

Madison Smith finished with 20 digs and a game-high four aces.

The third set saw a little bit of the same back and forth action, but a three-point run to change a 12-12 stalemate to a 15-12 Logger lead was the difference in the third and eventually the fourth set. 

Season Impact

The Leopards finish the Whittier Invitational 1-2 and move to 4-3 on the season.

Next Up

The Leopards will next open up SCIAC play on September 21 in Eagle Rock when they take on the Occidental Tigers at 7 p.m.