LA JOLLA, Calif.—UC San Diego women's volleyball will open its home schedule in LionTree Arena, hosting the UC San Diego Invitational Thursday through Saturday.
The Tritons (4-2) will face crosstown foe San Diego State on Thursday at 6 p.m. in the home opener. UC San Diego will take on Navy at 7 p.m. on Friday and wrap up the weekend against Denver on Saturday at 4 p.m. UC San Diego will also host three neutral matches between the other participating teams throughout the weekend.
All three of UC San Diego's matches will be broadcast on ESPN+ and live statistics will be available for all matches on UCSDTritons.com. Saturday's match against Denver will be Youth Day in LionTree Arena with free UC San Diego water bottles for the first 150 kids.
DETAILS
Match 7
UC San Diego (4-2) vs San Diego State (1-5)
Thursday, Sept. 7 | 6 p.m.
LionTree Arena (4,000) | La Jolla, Calif.
All-time series: 0-10 (0-1 in D-I)
Last meeting: 1-3 (Aug. 27, 2022)
Watch on ESPN+ |
Live Stats
Match 8
UC San Diego vs Navy (5-1)
Friday, Sept. 8 | 7 p.m.
LionTree Arena (4,000) | La Jolla, Calif.
All-time series: First meeting
Watch on ESPN+ |
Live Stats
Match 9
UC San Diego vs Denver (0-3)
Saturday, Sept. 9 | 4 p.m.
LionTree Arena (4,000) | La Jolla, Calif.
All-time series: 0-1
Last meeting: 0-3 (Sept. 17, 2022)
Watch on ESPN+ |
Live Stats
ABOUT THE TRITONS
Roster |
Schedule |
Stats
Overall: 4-2
Big West: 0-0
Home: 0-0
Away: 1-1
Neutral: 3-1
vs. Ranked Opponents: 0-0
Streak: W2
| ABOUT SAN DIEGO STATE |
ABOUT NAVY |
ABOUT DENVER |
| Roster | Schedule | Stats |
Roster | Schedule | Stats |
Roster | Schedule | Stats |
| Overall: 1-5 |
Overall: 5-1 |
Overall: 0-3 |
| 2022 Mountain West: 8-10 |
2022 Patriot: 11-5 |
2022 Summit: 12-6 |
| Home: 0-3 |
Home: 3-0 |
Home: 0-0 |
| Away: 0-1 |
Away: 1-0 |
Away: 0-1 |
| Neutral: 1-1 |
Neutral: 1-1 |
Neutral: 0-2 |
| vs. Ranked Opponents: 0-1 |
vs. Ranked Opponents: 0-0 |
vs. Ranked Opponents: 0-0 |
| Streak: L5 |
Streak: W4 |
Streak: L3 |
UP NEXT
UC San Diego will wrap up its final week of nonconference play at the TSU/Belmont Tournament in Nashville, Tenn. The Tritons will face co-host Tennessee State on Thursday, Sept. 14 at 4 p.m. PT and play two matches on Friday, Sept. 15. In the first match, UC San Diego will take on Jackson State in a neutral contest at 10 a.m. PT and face off with co-host Belmont at 4 p.m. PT.
LAST TIME OUT
The Tritons finished 2-1 for the second week in a row, traveling for the Gonzaga Tournament in Spokane, Wash. UC San Diego fell in the opening match to Air Force, 3-2, before bouncing back to defeat Idaho, 3-0, and Gonzaga, 3-1. For her performance,
Emily McDaniel was named to the all-tournament team and earned UCU Athlete of the Week.
UC San Diego 2, Air Force 3
Set scores: 19-25, 22-25, 25-19, 25-19, 12-15
Top performers: McInnes (20 kills, 13 digs, 4 aces, 3 blocks); McDaniel (12 kills, 3 blocks); Saran (9 kills, 6 blocks); Knowles (37 assists, 8 digs); Repetti (7 digs)
Notables: It was the first 20-kill match of the season for
Ava McInnes.
UC San Diego 3, Idaho 0
Set scores: 25-21, 25-14, 25-17
Top performers: McInnes (11 kills, 7 digs); Saran (11 kills); Brooker (9 kills, 3 blocks); McDaniel (3 blocks); Knowles (33 assists, 9 digs); Branavets (12 digs, 1 ace); Repetti (3 aces)
Notables:
Jasmine Saran notched a career high 11 kills in the contest.
UC San Diego 3, Gonzaga 1
Set scores: 22-25, 25-13, 25-19, 25-18
Top performers: McInnes (15 kills, 2 aces, 2 blocks); Saran (11 kills); Henderson (10 kills, 10 digs); McDaniel (10 blocks); Brooker (35 assists, 3 aces, 3 blocks); Branavets (13 digs)
Notables: On her birthday,
Emily McDaniel matched her career high with 10 blocks (6 solo);
Jasmine Saran matched her career high 11 kills for the second straight match;
Lauren Brooker recorded a career high 35 assists.
McDANIEL NAMED UCU ATHLETE OF THE WEEK (SEPT. 4)
Emily McDaniel was named to the all-tournament team for the second week in a row after helping the Tritons go 2-1 at the Gonzaga Tournament. The junior middle blocker averaged 1.33 blocks per set, collecting a team-high 16 blocks—including eight solo stops—over three matches. McDaniel recorded a season-high 12 kills and added three blocks on Friday against Air Force. In the second match of the day, McDaniel tallied five kills with no errors (.417) and added another three blocks to help the Tritons sweep Idaho. On Saturday, McDaniel matched her career high with 10 blocks—six solo stops—in a four-set victory over Gonzaga and added eight kills, finishing the weekend with 37.0 total points.
BROOKER, McDANIEL EARN BIG WEST WEEKLY HONORS (AUG. 28)
In week one of 2023, the Tritons received two of the Big West's weekly awards, with
Lauren Brooker earning Freshman of the Week and
Emily McDaniel earning Defensive Player of the Week (Aug. 28). It marked the fourth and fifth weekly honors for the UC San Diego program since joining the conference in 2021.
Brooker finished just shy of a triple-double in each of her first three collegiate starts. The freshman setter/opposite averaged 1.77 kills, 4.00 assists and 2.85 digs, operating in a 6-2 offense for the Tritons.
McDaniel averaged nearly two blocks per set (1.92) to dominate at the net for UC San Diego. The middle blocker was named to the Bulldog Brawl All-Tournament Team after recording 25 total blocks and 24 kills to collect 40.0 points over the weekend.
AWARD WINNERS
UCU Athlete of the Week:
Emily McDaniel (Sept. 4)
Gonzaga Tournament All-Tournament Team:
Emily McDaniel (Sept. 2)
Big West Defensive Player of the Week:
Emily McDaniel (Aug. 28)
Big West Freshman of the Week:
Lauren Brooker (Aug. 28)
Bulldog Brawl All-Tournament Team:
Ava McInnes,
Emily McDaniel (Aug. 26)
McINNES CHASING RECORDS
Junior outside hitter
Ava McInnes had a standout season in 2022, leading The Big West in both kills (3.81 k/s) and points (4.35 p/s). McInnes set the Tritons' Division I season record for kills with 469, which also ranks second in the all-time record book. She also set the all-time season record for attacks with 1,374 and tied the all-time single match kills record with 31 against Long Beach State (Oct. 14, 2022).
In her third season of competition, McInnes has 920 career kills and 2,715 attack attempts. She is 78 kills away from breaking into the top 10 all-time career kills records and ranks No. 9 all-time in attack attempts—96 away from moving into eighth (2,811).
STACKING UP AGAINST THE BIG WEST
After two weeks of competition in the books, the Tritons have the fourth-best record in the Big West and rank first in team blocks (2.74 per set) and in opponent hitting percentage (.132), second in aces (1.96 per set) and hitting percentage (.219) and third in points (16.62 per set).
EXPERIENCED ROSTER
UC San Diego returns 12 Tritons who saw playing time during the 2022 season, including All-Big West Second Team honoree
Ava McInnes. The senior class consists of
Shara Da Silva who started 30 matches at middle blocker in 2022 and
Natalie Repetti who appeared in 29 matches as a defensive substitution. The junior class includes outside hitters
Ava McInnes and
Zaria Henderson who both started all 32 matches for the Tritons. They are joined by
Juliette Bokor,
Sabire Karacaova,
Nevada Knowles (transfer),
Emily McDaniel and
Izabella Santa Cruz. The sophomore class consists of
Dana Branavets (transfer),
Reagan Dryden,
Katie Rapp,
Aubrey Tanner,
Kayla Uhlick and
Jasmine Saran.
FRESH FACES
The Tritons added five talented newcomers to the 2023 roster, including three freshmen, a sophomore transfer and junior college transfer. The Tritons will welcome first-year scholar-athletes
Lauren Brooker (Calabasas, Calif.),
Iris Canko (Temecula, Calif.) and
Reagan McWhinney (Loveland, Colo.), as well as sophomore transfer
Dana Branavets (San Diego, Calif.) from Boise State and junior transfer
Nevada Knowles (Ventura, Calif.) from Ventura College.
TRITONS PICKED SEVENTH IN PRESEASON POLL
UC San Diego was picked to finish seventh with 42 points in The Big West Preseason Coaches' Poll. 2022 Big West Champion Hawai'i was picked to finish first with 100 points and 10 first-place votes, followed by UC Santa Barbara (83 points) and Long Beach State (82 points, 1 first-place vote) rounding out the top three.
Cal Poly (81) was picked fourth and UC Davis (61) was voted fifth, followed by UC Irvine (54), UC San Diego (42), Cal State Bakersfield (33), Cal State Fullerton (32), CSUN (27) and UC Riverside (10).
WINNING IN THE CLASSROOM
Juliette Bokor,
Emily McDaniel,
Ava McInnes and
Natalie Repetti were four of the seven women's volleyball scholar-athletes named to the Big West All-Academic team for the 2022 fall season. Additionally, McDaniel was named to the 2022 College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District Team.
WELCOME TO LIONTREE ARENA
Since it was established nearly three decades ago, the University of California San Diego's RIMAC (Recreation, Intramural and Athletic Complex) Arena has been home to countless athletic competitions, graduations, concerts and other events that are imprinted on the memories of thousands of UC San Diego alumni, students, friends and visitors.
In June of 2022, UC San Diego announced that RIMAC Arena has been named LionTree Arena in recognition of a $5 million gift for scholar-athletes from LionTree, an independent investment and merchant bank with expertise in technology, media and the digital economy. LionTree was founded by UC San Diego alumnus Aryeh B. Bourkoff, who also serves as the firm's CEO. LionTree's gift is the largest ever received by UC San Diego Athletics, establishing the LionTree Endowed Scholarship Fund to support scholar-athletes.
ON THE MOVE
After 20 seasons playing as an NCAA Division II team, the entire athletics program has begun a four-year transition to NCAA Division I, culminating in full DI status as a member of the Big West Conference for the 2024-25 academic year. At that time, all sports will be eligible for conference and NCAA postseason play.
WHY THE TRITONS?
The Triton is described as the offspring of Poseidon and Amphitrite, a demigod of the sea with a lower part of the body like that of a fish. It is known as a mighty and fierce sea warrior. Given UC San Diego's close proximity to the Pacific Ocean and its connections with the world-famous Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the Triton became our mascot in 1964.
UC SAN DIEGO ON THE WORLDWIDE LEADER
Most UC San Diego home men's and women's basketball games, men's and women's soccer matches, men's and women's volleyball matches, baseball and softball games are broadcast live on ESPN+. For more information on where to watch UC San Diego women's volleyball, visit UCSDTritons.com/live.
GAME DAY GOES DIGITAL
Triton fans now have a whole new way to access game day information, as game programs have gone digital! Fans can visit UCSDTritons.com from their smart phone or scan the QR code at the entrance to LionTree Arena for everything they need to know about each home game, including updated rosters, schedules, and stats for each team, as well as links to watch on ESPN+.
COVERING THE TRITONS
Media members wishing to cover a UC San Diego game in-person at LionTree Arena must notify a member of the Athletics Communication staff no later than 24 hours prior to the game.
Following the conclusion of each home game, a video highlight melt and video postgame interviews will be made available for media members to download.
GET SOCIAL WITH UC SAN DIEGO WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL
Keep up with the Tritons all season long on social media through Twitter and Instagram. The team's handle is @ucsdwvb.
FOR THE YOUNGER CROWD
Got some young Triton fans in your family? If they are eighth grade or under, check out the Junior Triton Club. Membership includes a free t-shirt, admission to over 100 UC San Diego home athletic events, and much more!
GEAR
For the latest Triton apparel and accessories,
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 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.
