Posted with permission, article and pictures, courtesy of Chaminade University

LOS ANGELES – The Chaminade University women’s volleyball team playing on the mainland for the first time this season, lost both matches Friday at the Cal State Los Angeles Invitational.
 
In their opening match, the Silverswords rallied from a 0-2 deficit before falling to Central Washington, 23-25, 20-25, 25-21, 25-11, 11-15. They were later swept by host Cal State LA, 21-25, 20-25, 15-25 in their nightcap match. Both opponents are receiving votes in the AVCA Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll.
 
Brooklen Pe’a (Woods Cross, Utah/Youngstown State/Bountiful HS) totaled 18 kills on the day while Greta Corti (Varese, Italy/Univ. of San Francisco/Alessandro Manzoni Liceo HS) added 17. Lataisia Saulala (Morgan Hill, Calif./Oakwood) tallied seven total blocks, giving her 294 in her career which ranks second all-time.
 
The Silverswords fell to 3-6 on the season.
 
 
CWU 3, CUH 2
The ‘Swords were looking for redemption against the Wildcats less than a year removed when they saw their season come to an earlier-than-expected loss to them in last year’s West Regionals. In Friday’s rematch from that fateful December afternoon in San Bernardino, California, it was Central Washington that opened up a two-set lead. An 8-0 run late in the second set seemed to give CWU all the momentum heading into the third.
 
Tied at 21 in the third, Chaminade scored four straight with the help of Sasha Colombo’s (Milan, Italy/Colorado State/Liceo Scientifico Giordano Bruno HS) kill and block to set up a fourth set, which the Silverswords dominated, opening up a 16-5 lead, forcing a decisive fifth set.
 
However, a 5-0 Wildcats run in the middle of the set was too much for the ‘Swords to overcome.
 
Pe’a put down a team-high 13 kills while Corti had 10. Ajack Malual (Trento, Italy/Tambosi ETI), playing in her first match in a Chaminade uniform, also had 10 kills. Saulala recorded six total blocks along with seven kills while Alexia Byrnes (Chicago/Youngstown State/Saint Francis HS) had 30 assists and a season-high 20 digs.
 
Chaminade hit .190 and held CWU (4-2) to a .163 percentage while out-digging them, 76-66. Statistically, the match was near-even but it was the fifth set that was proved to be a factor with Central Washington hitting .346 with just one attack error while CUH hit just .125 and three errors.
 
CSULA 3, CUH 0
In each of the first two sets, Chaminade led by a point midway through and in both instances, Cal State Los Angeles put together 5-0 runs to take a two-set advantage. In the third, the ‘Swords ran out of steam with the Golden Eagles scoring seven of the last eight points to complete the sweep.
 
Corti had seven kills to lead the Silverswords while Colombo added six. Byrnes had 13 assists while Nanna Inoue (Kula, Maui, Hawai’i/Tyler College/King Kekaulike HS) managed 10 digs. Saulala had one block to add to her career total. She needs just seven to break Reigna Johnson’s career record of 300.
 
Chaminade only managed three total team blocks in the match. CSULA (3-3) out-hit the ‘Swords with 39 kills and a .278 attack percentage to 28 kills and a .149 percentage. However, Chaminade surrendered 12 aces to the Golden Eagles while getting just two themselves.
 
The Silveswords wrap the tournament Saturday against Seattle Pacific. Following the match, the team will make the drive to Carson, California, to face Cal State Dominguez Hills in their final non-conference match of the regular season.