CARSON, Calif. ? The 9th-ranked UC San Diego women's volleyball team overmatched Cal State Dominguez Hills on Friday night, sweeping the Toros 30-13, 30-18, 30-25. UCSD used a balanced attack as 10 different Tritons recorded kills, led by the senior duo of Casey Wilson and Amber Ries. The Tritons hit at a .391 clip for the night as Wilson and Ries combined for 19 kills against just one error in 40 attempts. UCSD had 14 aces in the three games, including five by Natalie Facchini and three apiece by Michelle Torres and Lauren Bradley. Bradley also led the Tritons with six blocks, as UCSD outblocked the Toros 10.0 ? 3.0. UCSD improves to 7-2, 1-0 CCAA, while CSUDH drops to 1-9, 0-2 CCAA.
The Tritons would trail briefly in game three and took control early in the first two games. The Tritons had an errorless first game, ending the game on a 9-1 run. UCSD had eight different players record kills in the first game, en route to a 12 kills, zero errors in 24 attempts, line. Bradley had three of UCSD's four aces, while Ries had four kills in the 30-13 win.
UCSD continued its momentum in game two as Facchini served four aces, giving the Tritons an early 9-0 lead. The Tritons were cruising, leading 18-9, before the Toros showed life and rallied for eight straight points, cutting the once large lead down to 18-17 UCSD. The Tritons quickly responded with two Rebecca Bailey aces and a Wilson and Hannah Gary block, shifting the momentum. UCSD would close game two on a 12-1 run, taking the game 30-18. The Tritons recorded seven blocks in the game, along with eight aces (Facchini with four, Torres with two and Bailey with two).
CSUDH led briefly in the early going in game three before the Tritons went on a 7-0 run which included kills by Sylvia Schmidt, Elaine Chen, Gary and two by Wilson. The Toros cut the deficit down to three points on two occasions, once at 17-14 and the last at 26-23. After Bradley recorded a kill, CSUDH and UCSD exchanged service errors and the Tritons led 28-25. Bradley and Schmidt would record the last two points for the Tritons, giving UCSD the 30-25 sweep.
The balanced Triton attack included 10 kills by Wilson, Ries with nine kills and Schmidt with six kills. Facchini also chipped in with a team-high 11 digs, while Torres added six digs.
UCSD is back in action on Saturday night for its home opener. The Tritons take on No. 20 Cal State L.A. First serve is set for 7:00 p.m. in RIMAC Arena.
