LA JOLLA, Calif.—UC San Diego women's volleyball completed the reverse sweep to defeat UC Riverside in five sets on Friday evening in LionTree Arena. The Tritons (11-8, 3-4 Big West) dropped the first two sets before rallying to take the final three and top the Highlanders (4-15, 3-4 Big West) in dramatic fashion, 19-25, 12-25, 25-18, 25-14, 15-12.
 
Ava McInnes led the Tritons with a match-high 18 kills, adding a team-high three aces and two blocks for 22.0 points. McInnes also collected 11 digs for her fourth double-double of the season. Jasmine Saran also reached double-figure kills with 11 and Sabire Karacaova added seven kills and nine digs. Nevada Knowles recorded a season-high 40 assists in the contest, directing the offense to a .238 hitting percentage. 
 
Defensively, Juliette Bokor led UC San Diego with five blocks, while Natalie Repetti finished with 13 digs and tied McInnes with a team-best three aces. 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The teams battled early, before UCR pulled in front with a three-point run to make it 9-5. The Tritons rallied to within one point at 15-14, but the Highlanders maintained momentum and extended their lead, 21-17. UC Riverside closed out the opening frame with a three-point run to take the set, 25-19. 
 
It was all UC Riverside to begin the second set, taking an early 7-1 lead and never looking back. The Highlanders led by as many as ten points, 17-7, before the Tritons put together a mini run to cut the deficit to 17-11. UCR responded by closing out the set with seven-straight points to take the second set, 25-12, and lead the match, 2-0.
 
The Highlanders took an early lead in set three, 5-2, before the Tritons caught fire with a 7-2 scoring run to jump in front. The teams traded points to a 16-15 UC San Diego advantage before the Tritons caught fire on a 7-1 scoring run. McInnes had her had in six of the seven points, with three kills, two aces and a block assist to give UC San Diego a 23-16 advantage. The Tritons closed out the set 25-18 to stay alive in the match, 1-2.
 
UC San Diego dominated the fourth set, leading by scores of 13-6 and 17-8 and recording its highest team hitting percentage of the match, .378. UC Riverside rallied late but the Tritons closed out the set on a 5-1 scoring run to win, 25-14, and force a fifth set.
 
In the deciding set, the Highlanders held a slim 3-2 advantage early on before UC San Diego strung together five consecutive points to take the lead. UCR answered with a four-point run of its own to pull the set even again, 7-7. At 8-all Saran recorded a kill, a solo block and Karacaova added an ace to put UC San Diego in the lead again, 11-9. UC Riverside pulled within one point late, 12-11, but a kill by McInnes and block from Bokor and McInnes gave the Tritons set point, 14-11. Katie Rapp closed out the match with a final kill at 15-12 to secure the reverse sweep and the victory for UC San Diego.
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Ava McInnes her fourth double-double of the season, collecting 18 kills and 11 digs.
• Jasmine Saran recorded career-highs in both kills (11) and points (15.5).
• Nevada Knowles recorded a season-high 40 assists.
• UC San Diego held the advantage in aces (11-7), blocks (9-6) and assists (55-53), while UCR had the edge in digs (82-74).
• With the win, the Tritons moved to 9-14 (4-1 in D-I) in the all-time series with UC Riverside.

UP NEXT
UC San Diego will remain in LionTree Arena to play host to UC Davis on Saturday at 7 p.m. in the annual Pink Match for Breast Cancer Awareness. The first 250 fans will receive a free pink UC San Diego hat, with the match will be broadcast on ESPN+ with live statistics available via UCSDTritons.com.
 
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 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.