REDLANDS, Calif. – The University of Redlands Women's Volleyball team (8-14, 4-12 SCIAC) won their final match of the season on Senior Night against Chapman University Saturday evening as they won in a five set thriller 25-20, 25-22, 22-25, 18-25, 15-12 sending off their two seniors Kiki Stradford (Mission Viejo, CA) and Bella Thornbury (Penn Valley, CA) on a high note.

It was a 4-0 Bulldogs lead to open the match. Makaila Brooks (Las Vegas, NV) opened the set with a kill off a Maddy Schonauer (Bakersfield, CA) assist and then Brooks combined with Stradford on a block.

That early four-point lead allowed the Bulldogs to stay in front from start to finish as they never led by any fewer than three points as they took the opening set 25-20. Stradford would post a team-high four kills in the set.

The second set started with a block by Esha Ball (Fresno, CA) as the big Bulldog front continued to prove the difference in the match, but the Panthers would win seven of the next 10 points as the Bulldogs trailed 7-4.  UR was able to regroup however stringing together nine of the next ten points to go back on top 14-9.

Redlands built on that lead until the Panthers drew within one, 22-21, thanks to a 4-0 surge. But following a timeout, Redlands was able to win three of the final four points to go up two sets to none.

In the third set the match was competitive from the start and went back-and-forth including eight ties.

Trailing by two, 16-14, Stradford had a kill, and the Panthers committed an error to tie up the score at 16. With the set still deadlocked, this time at 18, the two sides traded 2-0 runs that would find the Bulldogs up 22-20 after their second 2-0 stretch. Lali Makaiwi (Las Vegas, NV) and Kaegan Wherry (Englewood, CO) each had kills during the runs. Chapman, however, found their footing and won the set thanks to five straight.  

Chapman maintained their momentum in the fourth set as they held a 7-2 lead through nine points. Redlands, though, started to fight back, winning three of four as they got with two, 8-6. Lyric Waterman (Aurora, CO) assisted Stradford and Paige Sugg (Federal Way, WA) on their kills.

That two-point deficit was the smallest of the set as the Panthers made it two all with a 25-18 set win.

The fifth set started with two Panther errors and a Wherry kill as the Bulldogs led 3-1 in the first to 15 frame.  After a pair of points from Chapman, which tied it at three, Sugg would add two kills and Wherry would finish off another putting the Bulldogs within eight points of the match, 7-3.

It would not be an easy eight points as the Panthers would tie things up four more times with the last coming at 12-12 before Stradford and company would win the final three points to secure the victory.  

It was a career night for Stradford who set a season-high with 12 kills, 18.5 points, and nine total blocks. The nine blocks comes on the heels of an eight-block match at Caltech last night.

This match ends the season for Redlands, but only two of the 18 players are graduating. With the exception of Stradford the rest of their top hitters, all their main setters, and libero Makaiwi all have eligibility. The eight wins this year are the most since winning eight in 2019 as are the four Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) wins.