LA JOLLA, Calif.—UC San Diego women's volleyball dropped a 3-1 decision to UC Santa Barbara on Thursday evening in LionTree Arena.
The Tritons (11-9, 5-4 Big West) fell to the Gauchos (9-12, 5-4 Big West) by set scores of 22-25, 25-19, 21-25 and 16-25.
Jasmine Saran led the Tritons offensively for the second consecutive match, finishing with 14 kills, while
Emily McDaniel and
Ava McInnes added 11 and 10 respectively.
Audrey Hollis recorded a double-double with 40 assists and 11 digs.
McDaniel led the charge defensively at the net with five blocks, while Saran and Hollis added three apiece.
Paulina Baillie led the Tritons in the back court with 12 digs.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The teams remained close early in the opening set, battling to a 7-7 tie before UCSB began to pull away. The Gauchos used a 5-1 scoring run to lead 15-10 midway through the frame. UC Santa Barbara maintained its five-point advantage all the way to 22-17 before the Tritons rallied late in the set. A pair of kills by McDaniel and
Molly McCluskey and a service ace by Baillie forced a late timeout for UCSB. McInnes recorded back-to-back kills to pull the Tritons within one, 23-22, but the Gauchos scored the final two points to take the opening frame, 25-22.
The second set remained a tight battle that saw eight ties and four lead changes. After the teams traded a two-point swing all the way to 18-all, UC San Diego was the first to create distance behind the tough blocking of McDaniel, Hollis and
Kylie Pries. The Tritons outscored UCSB 10-2 down the stretch to take the second set, 25-19.
UC San Diego carried the momentum into the third set, jumping out to a 7-3 lead but the Gauchos quickly responded to even the set at 8-all. With the Tritons leading 13-12, UCSB used a 10-2 scoring run to build a commanding lead, 22-15. Three straight kills by Saran and a UCSB error made it 22-20, but the Gauchos remained in front and closed out the set, 25-21.
It was all UC Santa Barbara in the final frame. The Gauchos took the early lead, 7-2, and never looked back. UC San Diego continued to battle down the stretch but Santa Barbara took the set, 25-16, and the match, 3-1.
TRITON TIDBITS
UP NEXT
UC San Diego will travel to face Cal Poly on Saturday at 2 p.m. The match will be broadcast on ESPN+ and live statistics will be 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.
