The Griffins opened day three of the Nighthawks Classic with a matchup against the tournament hosts, Northwest Nazarene, and came away with a straight-sets victory to improve to 5–2 on the season.
The opening set was a back-and-forth battle with neither team able to create separation. Trailing 24–23 and facing set point, Westminster responded with a kill from Mailei Myers off a set from Atley Mitchell to even the score. A combined block by Hailey Killett and Jocelyn Grieser gave the Griffins the lead, and Isabella DeAntoni sealed the comeback with an ace to secure the 26–24 win.
Set two followed a similar script, remaining tight until the final points. This time, Allie Sparrow delivered three key kills down the stretch to push the Griffins ahead and give them a 2–0 lead with a 25–22 victory.
Northwest Nazarene jumped out to a 5–1 lead in set three thanks to Westminster attack errors and kills from Abby Black and Lily Kinloch, but the Griffins quickly regrouped. Outscoring the hosts 13–5 over the next stretch, Westminster seized control and closed out the match with a 25–18 win, completing the 3–0 sweep.
Statistically, Westminster held the edge with 43 assists compared to 35 for the Nighthawks and led in blocks 9–6.
Breegan Huntsman paced the attack with 11 kills and added 13 digs, while
Mailei Myers tallied 6 blocks.
Leila Cornejo directed the offense with a team-high 19 assists.
Game 2 – Final Match
Westminster (5–2) closed out the weekend against Westmont College (4–2) in the second match of the day. The opening set stayed close through the early points until the Warriors tied it at 15. From there, the Griffins took control, using a 10–1 run fueled by Sadie Parrish and Breegan Huntsman, who each tallied eight attacks in the set, to finish 25–16. Westminster also held a 13–6 advantage in assists.
The second set was a battle. Westmont went on an 8–3 run to grab a 17–16 lead, forcing a Westminster timeout. The teams traded points down the stretch, with the Warriors pulling ahead 22–20 after two Griffin errors. Once again with their backs against the wall, Westminster rallied behind kills from Jocelyn Grieser and Breegan Huntsman, plus an ace from Leila Cornejo, to tie it at 24. In a tense finish, Grieser delivered back-to-back kills on assists from Josie Gerritsen to seal the 30–28 win and a 2–0 set lead.
Westmont answered in set three, racing out to a 7–0 lead and never looking back in a 25–12 win.
Refocused, the Griffins came out strong in the fourth, jumping ahead 7–2 and looking like a new team. Mailei Meyers led the charge with four kills, Sadie Parrish added two more, and a string of Warrior errors helped Westminster to a decisive 12–4 run that closed out the set and the match, 3–1.
The Griffins moved to 6–2 on the season with the victory. Parrish led all players with 13 kills, Cornejo handed out 26 assists, and Meyers recorded 7 blocks. Westminster finished with advantages in kills (52–39), assists (49–39), and hitting percentage (.213 to .109).
