LA VERNE — Claire Strohm and the young Occidental College women's volleyball team just keep playing better and better volleyball with only three upperclassmen on its 19-player roster.

But despite Strohm's 20 kills and a two-set lead, the Tigers couldn't complete a major upset, falling at No. 18 La Verne 3-2 on Tuesday night.

Oxy came into the match heavy underdogs. Still the Tigers, who are maturing with every match, winning seven of their last 11, managed to take a 2-0 lead and even had the Leopards on the ropes with a match point at 14-13 in the final set.

But La Verne completed the comeback and Oxy had to settle for a moral victory against a formidable opponent.

Set Scores: 17-25, 22-25, 25-23, 25-18, 16-14 

Strohm, who is second in the SCIAC in kills per set (3.78) and emerging as one of the conference's best players, led the Tigers on .155 hitting, with 11 digs, two service aces and a block assist.

Cassandra Guidice had an excellent night for Oxy with 13 kills on .310 hitting and Amanda Herold added 12 kills, 14 digs, two aces and four block assists.

Oxy libero Kandace Korver had 14 digs and a pair of aces. Allie Sundara had seven kills, an ace and two block assists. Setter Sarah Beene had a great night running the show with 43 assists for the Tigers.

La Verne got 13 kills and nine block assists from Cassie Thompson, 12 kills from Destinee Sale and 11 kills from All-Americans Brittany Yaxley and Kelsi Robinson.

Season Impact: The Tigers fall to 9-11 overall and 5-7 in SCIAC play. They sit a game and a half back of Chapman for the fourth-and-final SCIAC Postseason Tournament spot with four conference matches to play.

La Verne improves to 17-4 and 11-2, having won 15 of its last 17, including handing No. 7 Cal Lutheran its first SCIAC loss of the season on Oct. 16.

Next Match: The Tigers face Whittier (14-9, 5-6 SCIAC) in an important match on Senior Day on Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Rush Gymnasium. Oxy will likely need to go 3-1 against the Poets, No. 7 Cal Lutheran, No. 12 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and Chapman to have a shot at the postseason.

The Tigers will honor seniors Korver and Beene with a brief pregame ceremony against Whittier.