PROGRESS CLOCKED

By Brandon Petersen

A year removed from winning just one match, Westcliff women's volleyball signaled a new era Wednesday night with a spirited four-set performance at Ottawa (AZ).

Though the Warriors ultimately fell 27–25, 25–11, 21–25, 25–18 at Faith Arena, the competitive sets and steady fight against a strong Spirit squad underscored how far the program has come.

Westcliff (0–2) nearly grabbed the opener before dropping it in extra points, then stormed back to take the third set with its sharpest hitting of the night (.171).

"We started very cold, down six or seven points, but we battled back and tied it up," Westcliff head coach Greg Wakeham said. "We all know we can play; it's just a matter of executing and staying mentally focused. The other thing is that our best players need to stick to the things they are best at. When they did that, we were able to succeed. When they didn't, we struggled."

The Dubs battled to the final whistle, showing the kind of resilience and depth that were rare last season.

Senior outside hitter Stacy Folas led the way with 12 kills and 14.5 points, while Samantha Carelock added nine kills and 10 points.

Joliayns Roman chipped in six kills and 13 digs, with libero Daniela Sandoval collecting a match-high 27 digs to anchor the defense.

"We had a battle tonight," Wakeham said. "We had some leaders emerge tonight, like Danny Sandoval, who was our player of the game. We also got more impact from Lauren Phinnessee in setting."

Phinnessee kept the offense moving with 21 assists, and Roman led from the service line with two of Westcliff's five aces.

Ottawa (3–1) leaned on balanced scoring to close out the match, led by Hannah Allman's 12 kills and Lauren Wamsley's nine.

For a program intent on building momentum, the performance offered a glimpse of growth and belief.

With multiple tight sets on the road against a winning opponent, Westcliff showed it is ready to compete far beyond its win total from 2024.

On Thursday the Warriors will continue their Arizona roadtrip with a visit to Justice before hitting Embry-Riddle on Friday.