CMS Volleyball Escapes First Set Battle, Sweeps Whittier

CLAREMONT, Calif. - The sixth-ranked Claremont-Mudd-Scripps volleyball team needed extra points to get out of the first set, but came away with a 29-27, 25-14, 25-21 win over Whittier on Saturday afternoon at Roberts Pavilion.

With the win, CMS improves to 13-3 overall and 7-0 in the SCIAC, while Whittier falls to 9-10 overall and 4-3 in league play. It was also the 50th straight conference win for CMS, which has won 56 straight SCIAC-sponsored matches dating back to 2019, including six in the SCIAC Tournament.

The Athenas have won all seven matches this season in straight sets, and have dropped only one set in their last 25 SCIAC matches, dating back to the start of last year. 

Dani Beder had a big day for CMS with 11 kills in 16 attempts and only one error, hitting .625. The 11 kills were a career-high, surpassing her previous best of nine set earlier this season. Jenna Holmes added 14 kills for CMS, while Georgia McGovern had 40 assists and Dede Carranza had 14 digs. 

CMS trailed for most of the first set, before a 6-0 run turned a 19-16 deficit into a 22-19 lead. Beder had two kills and a block during the run, and Audrey Sawyer added an ace. However, Whittier fought off two set points down 24-22 and tied it up 24-24. 

Brooke McKee had a kill to snap the tie, but the Poets scored the next two points to take a 26-25 lead and earn a set point of their won. McKee came up with a big kill to tie it, and Samantha Riter followed with an ace to give CMS the lead. The Poets tied it at 27-27, but McGovern had a kill and then assisted the set-winning kill from Holmes. 

CMS had an easier time in the second set, using a 5-0 run to build an 11-4 lead, including two straight kills from Sawyer, and taking it 25-14. CMS then had a 7-0 run in the third to go ahead 18-12, with Holmes tallying three service aces. Whittier battled to get back within 23-21, but Beder and Holmes finished off the match with kills. 

The Athenas will be back in action on Tuesday night for a road game at Caltech, beginning at 7 p.m.