LOS ANGELES — It seemed like every time the Whittier College volleyball team captured some momentum, Oxy's Stephanie Gann was there to establish her presence in Rush Gymnasium on Saturday evening as the Tigers rolled to a 25-17, 25-18, 25-22 sweep of the Poets.

The senior middle hitter knocked down a match-high 14 kills while hitting a whopping .500 to go along with five digs in the contest. Occidental (14-7, 8-3 SCIAC) has now won nine straight sets — shutting out Caltech and La Verne previously — and moves into sole possession of the second-place spot in the conference behind leader Cal Lutheran (19-1, 9-0 SCIAC), who they face off against next week.

"Today was great taking Whittier in three," Occidental head coach Heather Collins said after the game. "Beating the teams in three the last three matches has really helped us to rest our bodies, which is something that's really important for us right now, especially after the last weekend of two five-game matches in a row."

Alyssa Mort nearly duplicated Gann's output, smashing home 12 kills (.281) and one block. The Tigers predominantly ran their offense through Jessie Altman, who recorded a match-high 40 of 43 assists for the black and orange. The senior setter now has 699 helpers on the season, surpassing her own mark of 674 from a year ago.

"We're really starting to come together as a team and play with a high level of team chemistry," Collins said. "That's happening because we are communicating better and keeping our energy level up, and they're starting to trust each other more."

Collins also enjoyed the performances of libero Madyson Cassidy and sophomore outside Dana Michels. The pair kept rallies alive often throughout the game, coming up with 24 and 13 digs, respectively. Michels added nine kills to her team-leading 270 (3.42 per set) entering the day.

Oxy's defense virtually silenced the Whittier attack, holding the Poets to a pedestrian .134 hitting percentage while thwarting five team blocks. Outside hitters Alayna Rigo and Casie Lowden combined for 17 kills for the purple and white.

The Tigers travel to Thousand Oaks on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. to take on the No. 3 Regals.

"It's all coming together at a perfect time for us," Collins said. "Going into Cal Lu, we know we have nothing to lose. We're just going to go out there and get after it and play our hardest."