LA JOLLA, Calif.— Opening up the 2024 season on their home floor, the UC San Diego women's volleyball team picked up an impressive three set victory over Northern Arizona at LionTree Arena. With tonight's victory, UC San Diego first-year head coach Melanie Greene earned her first career victory with the Tritons.
 
The Tritons won all three sets on Friday by scores of 25-14, 25-22 and 25-20.
 
UC San Diego begins the season with a 1-0 record, while Northern Arizona fell to 1-1 through the first day of action.
 
Friday night's match was the first ever meeting between the Tritons and the Lumberjacks in each program's history.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Beginning the action at LionTree Arena for the first time in 2024, UC San Diego earned their first point of the new campaign following an NAU attack error the evened the score at one apiece. The Tritons didn't waste much time taking control of the set as they rattled off five of six points midway through as Emily McDaniel contributed multiple kills to build a 12-7 lead. Looking to secure their first set win, McDaniel delivered a decisive service ace as UC San Diego won the first set by a 25-14 margin.
 
Looking to continue the momentum into the second set of play, the Tritons came out strong early as a Jasmine Saran kill combined with a Saran and Ava McInnes block put UC San Diego ahead 2-0 to begin the set. Northern Arizona didn't give up as they would follow with four straight points and kept the margin close late in the set as they narrowed the score to 22-20 Tritons. UC San Diego was able to buckle down late as Molly McCluskey delivered the decisive kill off a Brooker assist as UC San Diego took a 2-0 lead in the match by winning the second set 25-22.
 
Putting the finishing touches on a tremendous opening night, Brooker delivered a service ace for the team's first point and Valentina Meirelles recorded a kill as UC San Diego took an early 5-1 lead. After the Lumberjacks worked to get closer in the match, the freshman McCluskey came through with the game-winning kill to pick up the 25-20 victory in the third set.
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Making her collegiate debut on Friday, McCluskey turned in a stellar performance with a team-high 14 kills to go along with three assists and a pair of block assists against NAU.
• Returning to La Jolla and making a big statement in her season debut, McDaniel posted 12 kills and a trio of service aces to help pace UC San Diego's offense.
• Serving as the team's libero all three sets in her collegiate debut, freshman Paulina Baillie recorded a team-best 20 digs to go along with four assists in her first game at LionTree Arena.
• With tonight's win it marks the third consecutive season that UC San Diego has begun the season 1-0.

 
UP NEXT
The Tritons now look ahead to the second day of the UC San Diego Invitational as they host Southern Utah on Saturday, Aug. 31 for a 5:00 p.m. first serve at LionTree Arena. Links to live video on ESPN+ and live statistics can be found on the team's website.
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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.