REDLANDS, Calif. – The University of Redlands Women's Volleyball team (6-2) opened their 2025 home schedule with a 3-0 (26-24, 25-20, 25-18) sweep of Westcliff University Tuesday evening inside Currier Gymnasium.
Through six points in the opening set the Bulldogs found themselves down by two, 4-2, but a kill by Paige Sugg (Federal Way, WA) sparked three unanswered with Esha Ball (Fresno, CA) picking up a kill off a Hannah Hajnal (El Cerrito, CA) assist and then Ball and Emma Murphy (South Jordan, UT) combined on a block to make it 5-4 Bulldogs.
Redlands had a three-point lead, 12-9, after a Lily Kautai (San Mateo, CA) kill off a Makenna Vanhofwegen (Buckeye, AZ) assist, but the Warriors put together their strongest stretch taking a 21-16 lead.
Over the final 13 points, however, the Bulldogs outscored the Warriors 10-3 and took the set, 26-24. Lily Houston (Reno, NV) sparked the surge with a pair of kills and was followed by tallies from Emily Kitchin (Portland, OR) and Kautai. The set ended with a service ace by Hajnal.
In the second set Westcliff had a service ace early that put them ahead by three, 9-6, before Hajnal set up Houston leading to Redlands winning nine of the next 10 to push in front by five, 15-10.
A late 6-0 run by the Warriors was not enough as Murphy ended the set with a kill.
Redlands conceded the first point of the third, but they quickly took a 2-1 lead after Avery Aminoff (Alexandria, VA) and Houston kills. This advantage grew allowing Head Coach Savannah Cox to showcase her depth, while picking up her second sweep on the season.
Kautai finished with 13 kills, hitting .571 with 11 digs. Houston added another seven, hitting .500 with five block assists. Vanhofwegen provided 19 assists with three digs, Hajnal added another 11 assists and 'Ale'amaikalani Paiva (Honolulu, HI) totaled nine digs in the back row.
Redlands will have the rest of the week off before beginning Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) play next Friday, September 26 at Chapman University.
