FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. — UC San Diego women's volleyball fell in three sets to Northern Arizona, 26-28, 21-25, 15-25, on Thursday night at Rolle Activity Center to open the Lumberjack Classic. After dropping a marathon first set, the Tritons (1-6) were unable to regain the momentum, moving to 1-1 in the all-time series with the Lumberjacks (5-2).
 
Maria Fernanda Afonso led the team with 10 kills on 22 swings and added seven digs, while Madison Johnson recorded six kills on 11 attempts, achieving a hitting percentage of .455. Mika Rome contributed significantly with 18 assists and six digs and Maija Nepszy recorded 14 assists and nine digs. Meanwhile, Jasmine Saran added seven kills and two total blocks for the Tritons. Paulina Baillie recorded a team-high 10 digs and two aces.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The first set opened with NAU building an early, 9-4 lead. Despite the Lumberjacks' strong start, the Tritons responded with a 7-1 scoring run to pull even at the midpoint. UC San Diego carried the momentum down the stretch with a 5-0 run, highlighted by a pair of service aces from Baillie, pushing their lead to 20-15. NAU responded with a five-point run of its own to pull even once again at 20-all. The set remained tightly contested down the stretch, with the Tritons tying the score at 24-24 thanks to Afonso's timely kill. UC San Diego reached two set points, but the Lumberjacks edged out a win in the end, securing the set 28-26 with three straight kills for the win.
 
The second began similarly to the first, with NAU jumping out to an early 8-4 lead. Despite the Tritons' efforts, including kills by Ireland McNees and Saran, the Lumberjacks built extended their lead to 13-7. UC San Diego rallied back to narrow the gap to 18-19, highlighted by Johnson's kill, but NAU finished the set with a 25-21 victory.
 
Once again, Northern Arizona quickly built a 9-4 advantage to begin the third set. The Tritons attempted a comeback with key contributions from Johnson and McNees, but the Lumberjacks maintained pressure, pushing their lead to 23-14 before closing the set at 25-15. 
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• NAU held the advantage in hitting percentage (.238 to .114), blocks (12-4) and digs (47-45), while the Tritons had the edge in kills (39-37) and assists (38-35). The teams were even in aces (2-2).
• Marleena Catalan made her Triton debut in the match.
• The Tritons moved to 1-1 in the all-time series with Northern Arizona.
• UC San Diego is 1-4 in three-set matches this season.
• Starters included Maria Fernanda Afonso, Paulina Baillie, Madison Johnson, Molly McCluskey, Maija Nepszy, Jasmine Saran and Kayla Uhlick.

 
UP NEXT
The Tritons will remain in Flagstaff for the second match of the Lumberjack Classic, taking on Southern Utah on Friday at 4:30 p.m. PT. The match will not be streamed but live statistics will be available via UCSDTritons.com.
 
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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.