BOX SCORE

LAIE, Hawai'i — Presented with the challenge of competing against BYU-Hawaii, the No. 2 ranked NCAA Division II team in the West Region on its home court, the Dominican University of California volleyball team played inspired ball in a 25-15, 25-11, 25-12 defeat to the Pacific West Conference-leading Seasiders.

Sophomore Seluia "Ria" Falealili had six kills and Jessica Jones added five for the Lady Penguins (1-20, 1-11). Another sophomore, Harrah Stocking, had a season-high 12 digs against the Seasiders (15-3/12-1).

The Lady Penguins were only trailing 9-6 to second-ranked BYU-Hawaii in the opening set on Wednesday when the hosts scored 10 consecutive points. On the 20th point, Seasiders' 6-foot junior Courtney Skaggs had such a fast and ferocious spike that it struck the face of Dominican's Katy Batchelder. BYU 6-1 junior Lauren Hagemeyer led the Seasiders with 16 kills, 10 in the second set.

In the final set, BYU-Hawaii stormed to an 18-4 lead but the Lady Penguins responded with six consecutive points, their best stretch of the evening. Falealili, the PacWest Freshman of the Year for Dominican last season, topped the Lady Penguins with a .136 hitting percentage.

Dominican Head Coach Gayle Stammer was pleased with her players' competitive spirit in the contest, which ended around midnight Pacific time on Wednesday.

“They are getting more comfortable on the court with what they are capable of doing,” said Stammer. “They looked like they were enjoying the challenge tonight. BYU-Hawaii is strong and very unassuming, which is fun to play against. Our team learned a lot and over the past few days here and we're looking forward to getting back out and facing Hilo.”

The Lady Penguins play Hawai'i-Hilo, the sixth ranked NCAA Div. II team in the West Region, on Friday and Saturday night on the Big Island to conclude their nine-day, five-game trip to Hawai'i.