LA JOLLA, Calif. - Strong hitting and blocking led the No. 14 UC San Diego women's volleyball team to a 3-1 win against Chico State in California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) play Saturday night at RIMAC Arena.
Scores were 24-26, 25-21, 25-11 and 25-22 as UCSD improved to 4-2 overall and 2-0 in the CCAA. CSUC fell to 2-3 and 1-1.
For the match, the Tritons attacked at .263 with 54 kills and 14 errors in 152 attempts. They also totaled 16 team blocks, a season-high. On the other side of the net, the Wildcats hit .106 (52-35-161) and managed just one team block. They did hold a 72-59 advantage in digs.
Opposite hitter Caitlin Brenton put together a well-rounded effort for UCSD, leading all players with 23 points. She finished with 16 kills, five assists, three service aces, seven digs and seven blocks. The senior also hit .400 with only two miscues in 35 attacks.
Danielle Dahle had 14 kills and 12 digs, while Amanda Colla (Carlsbad/San Dieguito Academy) recorded 10 kills and eight digs. Setter Heidi Sierks amassed 40 assists, a team-best 16 digs and six blocks. Kameron Cooper and Rebecca Seaberry each had seven blocks.
Three Wildcats had 10 or more kills including Izzy Sagely (14), Lindsay Quigley (12) and Shannon Boling (10). Emily Duran had a match-high 25 digs.
Down 24-22 in the opening set, a kill by Brenton and blocks from Dahle and Alyssa McNeely tied it up. However, the Wildcats got back-to-back kills from Sagely to win the set.
UC San Diego scored the first three points of the second set and never trailed. Chico State tied it once at 7-7, but the Tritons scored three straight points and retained a lead the rest of the way.
The third frame was all UCSD as it hit .414 (14-2-29), its highest attack percentage of the match. The Tritons led from start to finish with Brenton scoring the final three points on a kill and back-to-back aces.
A five-point run gave UCSD a 10-5 advantage in the final set, but CSUC scored six of the next seven points to tie it up at 11-11. Blocks by Brenton and Seaberry led to a 20-15 Triton lead, but again the Wildcats came back, scoring five consecutive times to equal the count. UC San Diego earned five of the final seven points to win the set and the match. Cooper had a pair of kills in the sequence.
UCSD continues its five-match home stand by hosting CCAA opponent Cal Poly Pomona on Wednesday, Sept. 17 at 7 p.m.
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