LA JOLLA, Calif. - UC San Diego's bid for a title at the first-ever California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Volleyball Tournament was halted Friday as the Tritons were defeated, 3-1, by No. 19 Cal State San Bernardino in a semifinal match at RIMAC Arena.
Scores were 25-17, 18-25, 25-19 and 25-23 in favor of second-seeded CSUSB, which improved to 26-4 on the season. UCSD, the tournament's third seed, fell to 19-11 overall.
The Coyotes' net play was effective as they out-blocked the Tritons 16-5, and held their opponent to a .149 (52-27-168) hitting percentage. San Bernardino hit .279 (61-15-165) on the night.
Triton Danielle Dahle (La Mesa/Grossmont HS) led all players with 24.5 points and 21 kills. The senior outside hitter swung at .380 (21-2-50) and also added two aces, 11 digs and three block assists.
Junior outside hitter Meagan Wright (San Diego/Bonita Vista HS) and senior setter Heidi Sierks also recorded double-doubles for UCSD. Wright had 10 kills and 16 digs, while Sierks tallied 37 assists and 19 digs. Sophomore libero Amanda Colla (Carlsbad/San Dieguito Academy) finished with a match-high 20 digs.
Cal State San Bernardino had four players with 10 or more kills including Alexandra Torline (18), Lauren Nicholson (13), Ashley Solis (13) and Malika O'Brien (12). O'Brien had nine blocks (two solos) and Kaitlyn Christner had six (three solos). Christner also led her team defensively with 19 digs.
The Coyotes committed 12 service errors in the match.
It was the third meeting between UCSD and CSUSB this season. The Tritons swept on Sept. 15 in San Bernardino, while the Coyotes won, 3-1, on Sept. 22 in La Jolla.
Cal State San Bernardino will battle Sonoma State for the CCAA Tournament crown Saturday at 7 p.m. The winner earns an automatic berth in the NCAA postseason.
Sonoma State (25-3), 17th-ranked and the tournament's top seed, swept fourth-seeded Cal Poly Pomona in Friday's early semifinal to punch its ticket into Saturday's title match.
UC San Diego will have to wait and see if it receives an at-large spot in the NCAA tourney. The selections will be announced on Monday, Nov. 23, at 4:30 PT at NCAA.com.
For CCAA Tournament ticket information and post match press conference videos, visit the tournament site.
2015 CCAA Volleyball Tournament
Quarterfinals - Nov. 19, 2015
#4 Cal Poly Pomona 3, #5 SF State 1
#1 Sonoma State 3, #8 Chico State 0
#2 Cal State San Bernardino 3, #7 Stanislaus State 0
#3 UC San Diego 3, #6 Cal State L.A. 1
Semifinals - Nov. 20, 2015
#1 Sonoma State 3, #4 Cal Poly Pomona 0
#2 Cal State San Bernardino 3, #3 UC San Diego 1
Final - Nov. 21, 2015
#1 Sonoma State 3, #2 Cal State San Bernardino 2
All-Tournament Team
Zoe Herrera, Cal Poly Pomona
Nicoletta Stork, Cal Poly Pomona
Iona Lofrano, Cal State L.A.
Malika O'Brien, Cal State San Bernardino
Ashley Solis, Cal State San Bernardino
Alexandra Torline, Cal State San Bernardino
Kaitlyn Connolly, Sonoma State
Kelsey McIntyre, Sonoma State
Lexi Reddick, Sonoma State
Danielle Dahle, UC San Diego
Heidi Sierks, UC San Diego
Most Valuable Player
Caylie Seitz, Sonoma State
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