Jonas Holt
Sports Editor
The No. 15 Leopards delivered a dominant performance on Senior Night, sweeping the Whittier Poets, 3-0, in their final regular-season match.
This victory marked the Leopards’ third straight sweep and locked in their second-place finish in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
With the win, La Verne closes the season with a 21-5 overall record and a 13-3 conference record, ensuring home-court advantage for the SCIAC Semifinals.
“I loved the energy we had today. We came in really focused and dialed in, and when this team is on, they’re really good,” head coach Jeff Hendershot said.
Before the match, the Leopards honored their graduating seniors in a heartfelt pregame ceremony.
Seniors Kiley McGarry, Madison Smith, Sydne Humphrey, Kailin Katena, Julia Thomas, Kaitlyn Patterson, Isabella Quiroz, Allison Whiteman and team manager Ashlyn Ledbetter were recognized for their contributions to the program.
With friends, family, and teammates cheering them on, the seniors took the court with extra motivation, setting a celebratory tone for the match.
“We knew it was going to be an emotional night, and we just prepared really well for it,” Whiteman said. “We worked really hard leading up to this game because we wanted to beat them really bad the second time around.”
In the first set, the Leopards wasted no time establishing control. Sophomore middle blocker Zacky Coaston led a defensive charge, posting five blocks to keep Whittier’s offense at bay.
Coaston’s performance helped limit the Poets to a low hitting percentage, while the Leopards capitalized with strong kills and consistent play from the front line.
La Verne cruised to a 25-14 victory in the opening set, showcasing the defensive prowess and energy that has propelled them to a top-15 national ranking.
The second set opened with a surprising surge from Whittier, as the Poets jumped to a quick 9-3 lead, taking advantage of a few early La Verne errors. The Leopards quickly regrouped, igniting a powerful 12-1 run that flipped the momentum. Junior outside hitter Mya Ray led the charge offensively while Smith added two service aces to keep Whittier on their heels.
The Poets managed to tie the score at 17-17, but the Leopards closed out the set with a decisive eight-point streak, capped by a timely ace from Patterson to take the set, 25-17.
“It was just sticking to the game plan. We worked a lot on blocking and defense this whole week, and it paid off,” Patterson said. “This night was so special to me, and I couldn’t ask for a better final year of playing volleyball.”
The Leopards entered the third set in full control, maintaining steady pressure on Whittier.
Patterson opened the scoring with another ace, setting the tone as La Verne pushed forward with kills from Ray and sophomore outside hitter Lauren Gott. Coaston continued to shine defensively, stacking up blocks and disrupting Whittier’s offense.
“We’re always just going to stick to our basics and not change anything, and be who we are,” Ray said.
Although the Poets made a late push, the Leopards stayed composed, closing out the set, 25-16, to complete the sweep.
With this final regular-season victory, La Verne solidified its place as the No. 2 seed in the upcoming SCIAC Tournament. The Leopards looked to defeat Whittier once again in the semifinal matchup on Thursday evening. A win would see the Leopards advance to the SCIAC championship for the second consecutive year, facing the winner of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and Pomona-Pitzer on Saturday evening.
Jonas Holt can be reached at jonas.holt@laverne.edu.
Jonas Holt is a senior journalism major with a concentration in print and online journalism. He is sports editor of the Campus Times, a staff writer for La Verne Magazine and staff photographer for both publications. He has previously been a staff writer for the Campus Times.
Emily Casillas is a junior photography major with a concentration in sports photography. She is a staff photographer for both the Campus Times and La Verne Magazine, as well as La Verne Athletics. Her work can also be found at Shot2byEmily.
