The second seed Grant Lancers hosted the sixth seed University Wildcats for a Los Angeles City Section Division 1 semifinals match. The Wildcats, who advanced to the semifinals with an upset victory over Birmingham, continued their underdog win streak with a four set win over the Lancers (23-25, 18-25, 25-20, 17-25). 

Grant senior Kaia Hummell facilitated a strong offensive start for the Lancers in the first set. Hummell contributed three kills in an early Grant scoring run, but the Wildcats’ defense, led by sophomore Aria Finch, bounced back quickly to tie the set at 6-6. The Wildcats found success when they had control over the pacing of the play, often slowing their possessions down for carefully placed attacks to gaps in the middle of the Lancers’ defense. The score remained close throughout the set, with University holding a 23-24 advantage entering set point. The Wildcats closed the first set with a kill from junior captain Yulyana Kmita to take a 0-1 match lead. 

The Lancers struggled to bounce back after dropping the first set, quickly trailing 8-15 in the second. University senior captain Jessica Fabbro dominated scoring, contributing three kills to boost the Wildcats’ advantage to 10-19. The set came to a close following a series of Lancers offensive errors, with a final score of 17-25 to strengthen the Wildcats match lead to 0-2. 

With their season on the line, the Lancers snapped out of their offensive woes, taking a 10-5 lead, facilitated by strong serving from freshman Anna Arakelyan. The Lancers, however, grew too comfortable with their set advantage, and the errors crept back into their play, shrinking their lead to 16-14. Grant juniors Maliyah Winston and Keba Campbell had two kills each to maintain a Lancers lead, with one final kill from Campbell resulting in a 25-20 Lancers victory in the third set, forcing a fourth. 

University junior Sierra Harris set the tone in the fourth set, opening with back to back aces. The Wildcats played the fourth set with the determination that could only be seen in an underdog on the verge of yet another upset. University maintained a lead throughout the entire fourth set, with Kmita providing impactful defensive and powerful offensive plays. The Wildcats closed the set with a kill from junior Zoe Lars for a final score of 19-25, and a 1-3 match victory. 

The loss marked the end of the Lancers season, with a final record of 28-6-4, including an undefeated 12-0 within the East Valley League. 

Wildcats head coach Emilio Alvarado looks forward to the championship, “We’re battle tested, as an underdog. We just go out there and see how it goes. Grant’s a great team, and they’ve beaten us twice before, so it’s just good to get one.” The Wildcats will play in the City Section finals on November 9 against the fifth seed Los Angeles CES.