BELMONT, Calif. – Following a pre-match Senior Day ceremony inside Walter Gleason Gym on Saturday afternoon, senior outside hitter Isaura Santos and middle blocker Jillian Wheaton went out offering major contributions offensively and defensively for Academy of Art volleyball in a 3-1 (28-26, 25-23, 16-25, 25-20) loss to Hawaii Pacific. Behind graduate student outside hitter Amalie Rupertova's match-high 18 kills, Santos tied her season-high with nine kills plus 18 digs while Wheaton hit .421 with eight kills and no errors as well as four block assists.

An 8-1 start to the match had HPU in front initially, but graduate student outside hitter Maya McClellan's kill sparked an 11-2 surge that featured four kills from Rupertova and took the Urban Knights from down seven to up one at 14-13. After the Sharks built another lead up 20-17, six of the next eight points were scored by ART U, including three straight Rupertova kills, before Academy of Art had a 24-23 set point. The action continued to go back and forth only to see Hawaii Pacific prevail 28-26.

Stifling HPU's momentum immediately, the Knights quickly jumped out to a 12-4 advantage in the second set, powered by three kills from Wheaton's hand. The lead grew to 10 at 16-6 after four more points, but a 10-2 response by the visitors nearly had them all the way back. Rupertova's second kill of the frame kept ART U up 22-20, but the Sharks could not be stopped, scoring five of the final six for a match-evening 25-23 victory.

Things righted for Academy of Art in the third frame when a 10-3 beginning came in large part from four service aces (three by sophomore setter/defensive specialist Nina Garcia). The Knights then answered five straight from HPU with their own 4-0 run keyed by two kills from junior setter Elly McInerney. Up five in the late stages, ART U used a block by Wheaton and McClellan, an opposing attack error, a kill by Rupertova, and a McClellan service ace to stay alive and secure the win 25-16.

The most evenly-played start to a set came in the fourth where the teams' fourth tie at 6-6 soon gave way to a 6-1 HPU push. Short bursts of offense eventually helped Academy of Art nearly complete its comeback with a 6-2 run to make it a 23-20 ballgame, however, the final two points were all the Sharks needed to complete the 25-20 triumph and 3-1 result.

Ending the year at home, ART U finishes 6-23 overall and 5-15 in PacWest play with Rupertova's aforementioned 18 kills leading the way offensively and coming with eight digs. Santos and McClellan each had nine kills apiece, providing 18 digs and 14 digs respectively. McClellan also finished with a season-high six block assists while McInerney added her fourth double-double with 43 assists and 11 digs. As a team, the Knights amassed 66 digs which was a season-high in four-set matches.

Wheaton ends her career as the program's attack percentage leader at .325 while her career block totals end her second in block solos (40) as well as fourth in both block assists (215) and total blocks (255).

Hawaii Pacific concludes its season at 3-23 overall and 3-17 in conference action. Riley Gill paced the Sharks with 15 kills and 15 digs.

This concludes the 2022 campaign for Academy of Art volleyball. For the latest news and information, and the upcoming season in review, check out www.ARTUAthletics.com.