SAN DIEGO — UC San Diego women's volleyball went 1-1 on Saturday to wrap up play in the 2022 San Diego State Invitational, scoring a historic victory over the University of California in five sets before falling to the hosts, San Diego State, in four.
 
The results give the Tritons, Golden Bears, and Aztecs identical 2-1 records after the first weekend of the season.

HOW IT HAPPENED VS. CAL
UC San Diego began Saturday by earning its first ever victory over Cal, defeating the Golden Bears in five sets. The scores were 25-22, 13-25, 25-22, 20-25, and 15-11 in favor of the Tritons.
 
A late 6-0 scoring run helped UC San Diego take the first set, turning a three-point Cal lead into a three-point advantage for the Tritons. They would go on to take the frame by that margin.
 
After Cal took the second set to level the match, UC San Diego regained the lead, winning a nerve-wracking third set by the same score as the first. At one point, the Tritons led 19-9, only for the Golden Bears to come back and tie it, 21-21. But Zaria Henderson recorded a kill, Cal committed an attack error, then Emily McDaniel and Ava McInnes combined on a block to give the Tritons set point. Naya Dong aced her serve to end it.
 
Cal took a six-point lead early in the fourth, and while the Tritons made a comeback late in the frame, they could not stop the Golden Bears from sending the match to a decisive fifth set. UC San Diego scored the first three points of the fifth and never gave up the lead, with McInnes recording her team-high 19^th kill to punctuate the Tritons' victory.
 
McInnes was excellent on both sides of the ball for the Tritons, adding 10 digs for her second double-double in as many matches. Izzi Strand also put up her second double-double of the season, pairing 34 assists with a career-best 18 digs, leading UC San Diego in both categories. Shara Da Silva and McDaniel each had five blocks, and three different Tritons — McInnes, Dong, and Natalie Repetti — tallied a pair of aces.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED VS. SAN DIEGO STATE
After falling behind San Diego State, two sets to none, UC San Diego showed signs of a comeback, but eventually dropped their first match of the season, 3-1. The scores were 25-22, 25-20, 26-28, and 25-20 in favor of the Aztecs.
 
While the Tritons kept things close, they simply could not match the hosts' offensive efficiency. San Diego State hit .333 and recorded 19 kills in the first set, finishing the match with a team hitting percentage of .270. In the second set, UC San Diego only had four errant attacks, three of those because of Aztec blocks, but still could not match the hosts' offensive output.
 
Facing a potential sweep in the third set, the Tritons staved off four match points before capitalizing on their first and only set point opportunity to keep the match alive. Unfortunately, San Diego State's potent attack hit .306 in the fourth to power the Aztecs to victory.
 
For the Tritons, Strand recorded her third straight double-double with 35 assists and 10 digs. McInnes led UC San Diego's attack with 14 kills, while Da Silva and Dong led in blocks (9) and digs (13), respectively.

TRITON TIDBITS

• Freshmen Kayla Uhlick and Katie Rapp both made their collegiate debuts in the day's first match; Rapp picked up a kill, an assist, and a block, with Uhlick also tallying an assist
• UC San Diego's .125 hitting percentage against Cal is their lowest hitting percentage in a win in over six years
• The Tritons led Cal in only one stat Saturday afternoon, digs, 64-60
• Freshman Jasmine Saran made her collegiate debut against San Diego State, recording a kill and three total blocks
• Shara Da Silva had an efficient attacking day, hitting .333 in both of Saturday's matches

UP NEXT
UC San Diego heads to Thibodaux, Louisiana September 2 and 3 for Nicholls State's Colonel Classic tournament. There the Tritons will face off with Southern Illinois and Nicholls State at 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. PT, respectively, on Friday before taking on Southern University at 8 a.m. PT Saturday.
 
Live stats will be available for all three matches. For live stat links, click here.
 
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 84 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.