ROCKLIN, Calif. – Coming off a five-set thriller last night that had Warrior Arena rocking, the Warriors hit the court on Saturday to take on another formidable GSAC foe, Life Pacific. After a seesaw start, Jessup would put their foot on the gas and power home to the finish, taking the battle in four sets.
 
After the match, Head Coach Tiger Shelton expressed his thanks to another packed house in Warrior Arena. Shelton stated, "Having a really great crowd yelling and screaming definitely makes a difference."
 
The Warriors rocketed out to a quick start Saturday, taking a 10-5 lead in the first set that would eventually get extended to 13-5 on a kill from Cloe Gunter. However, LPU would score five-of-six points in the midway portion of the set, narrowing the gap to four.
 
Late in the opener, Life Pacific went on a run to close the margin to one at 23-22. However, two late kills from Taylor Dilley thwarted any chance for Life to steal the set, as Jessup won 25-23.
 
The second set was all Life Pacific, as they opened up to a 10-2 lead and never looked back, taking the set 25-13.
 
Needing to regain their composure from a quick second set, the Warriors looked to Madalyn Miller, who recorded Jessup's first two kills of the third to create a more even start. The two teams traded points until the Warriors went on a 6-0 run, highlighted by two Mary Padilla aces.
 
Gunter would pick up two timely kills late in the set to allow Jessup to pull ahead by four, but again LPU came back. Extra points were needed, and a kill from Dilley would be the crescendo as Jessup won the third, 28-26.
 
Set four was a carbon copy of the third, with the two teams trading points early on, leading to LPU narrowly leading 10-9. From here, LPU would score five of the next six to pull ahead 15-10 and make the possibility of a fifth set seem like a possibility. Jessup quickly removed that thought.
 
The Warriors scored six of the following seven points, three of which came off Dilley kills. However, the Warriors would close the set, scoring six of the final eight, as Padilla recorded her fifth ace of the day to secure the victory.
 
Shelton stated that the victory has the team feeling "Really good. That's a really good team, but we came to play. We have a way of shifting gears throughout the match, but the fact is they always find a way to come back. It's everybody. It's the bench and the people on the court."
 
Dilley continues her great play as of late, as she finished with her fifth 20-plus kill match of the year, totaling 22 on Saturday, which is the second-most in WJU history for a four-set battle. Her 249 kills this season already rank as the seventh most in a single season in Jessup Volleyball history.
 
Padilla added to 12 kills to pair with her success at the service line Saturday. Miller and Gunter would each finish with five.
 
"Once again, Taylor Dilley and Mary Padilla carried the load, but we got a lot of really good and timely stuff from the other players," added Shelton. "Cloe came through and hit a really nice ball down the line in the fourth when we needed it."
 
The win improves the Warriors to 7-9 on the season. In conference play, Jessup is in a good position as they sit at 6-3.
 
On being in the mix with the GSAC, Shelton added, "I feel good moving forward. We are doing really well."
 
Jessup is currently on a three-match win streak, and they will look to extend it to four in one week when they travel to Atherton next Saturday to take on Menlo College at 7 p.m.  
William Jessup University is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), and the Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC). For additional information regarding Jessup Athletics, visit www.jessupathletics.com; visit www.jessup.edu for more information on William Jessup University. Follow Jessup Athletics on social media: William Jessup University Athletics (Facebook) and @JessupAthletics (Twitter & Instagram).