HAYWARD, Calif. - Keeping its perfect conference record intact, the University of California San Diego women's volleyball team swept Cal State East Bay on the road Friday, backed by a combined 26 points from Meagan Wright (Bonita/Bonita Vista HS) and Jessyca Beksa.
Scores of the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) contest were 25-23, 25-20 and 25-18 at Pioneer Gymnasium. UC San Diego moved to 7-5 overall and 4-0 in the CCAA, while East Bay dropped to 5-8 and 1-4.
"It was a good road win against a team that is always difficult to stop offensively," said UCSD head coach Ricci Luyties.
Wright, a senior outside hitter, finished with a team-high 13.5 points and 12 kills. She hit .312 with two errors in 32 attacks. Wright completed her ninth double-double of the season by adding 11 digs. She has hit over .300 in her last two outings.
Beksa contributed 12.5 points with 10 kills, two service aces and a block assist. The freshman also had four digs.
Sophomore setter Kayla Evans (San Diego/Del Norte HS) registered a double-double with 22 assists and 11 digs, while junior outside Amanda Colla (Carlsbad/San Dieguito Academy) paced the Tritons defensively with 13 digs. Junior transfer Rachel Linden totaled 16 assists while splitting time at the setter position.
UCSD hit .299 (50-12-127) for the match, its highest percentage of the season, while CSUEB attacked at a .217 (38-12-120) clip.
"Kayla and Rachel did a nice job running our offense and we kept our hitting errors down, which made us steady throughout the match," said Luyties.
The Pioneers got a match-high 13 kills from Kiki Leuteneker and Brandi Brucato led all players with 19 digs. Setter Katie Ireland had 28 assists and 12 digs.
In the opening set, UC San Diego led 21-14 before East Bay rallied. The Pioneers won seven of the next eight points to get back within one, 22-21. Simone Froley had a pair of kills for the Tritons to get them a match point at 24-22, but the Pioneers staved it off with a kill from Leuteneker. However, an East Bay attack error allowed UCSD to win the set.
The Tritons ran out to a 6-1 lead in the second frame with Froley putting down two kills to help the cause. Down 14-10, the Pioneers scored four unanswered points to tie it up and it stayed closed through 18-18. UC San Diego then poured it on, scoring seven of the final nine points to win it and take a 2-0 advantage. Beksa had two kills during the run, including the one that gave UCSD its 25th point.
In the third set, Cal State East Bay led early. At 7-5 in favor of the Pioneers, the Tritons again came alive, winning six-straight points to take an 11-7 lead. East Bay came within two at 17-15, but that's as close as it would get the rest of the way.
There were only five lead changes throughout the match.
UC San Diego plays at Cal State Monterey Bay (7-5, 2-3) Saturday at 7:00 p.m. The Otters suffered a five-set loss to Cal State San Marcos Friday night in Seaside.
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