FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. — UC San Diego women's volleyball fell in four tightly contested sets to Southern Utah, 25-21, 20-25, 21-25, 25-27, on Friday night at Rolle Activity Center. In their second match of the Lumberjack Classic, the Tritons (1-7) took an early lead before eventually falling to the Thunderbirds (1-7) to move to 1-1 in the all-time series.
Jasmine Saran led the Tritons with 16.0 total points, including 11 kills on a .375 hitting percentage, five blocks and two aces.
Maija Nepszy facilitated the offense, recording 34 assists and matching Saran with five total blocks.
Molly McCluskey added a team-high 14 kills and topped the defense with 15 digs for her third double-double of the season.
Ireland McNees bolstered the attack with 11 kills and added three total blocks.
HOW IT HAPPENED
UC San Diego began the first set with a commanding start, grabbing an early, 4-0, lead with a series of decisive plays, including a pair of kills by
Maria Fernanda Afonso and McCluskey, followed by an attack error by Southern Utah. Despite a mid-set push by SUU, closing the gap to 13-13, UC San Diego pulled ahead once again behind three consecutive kills by McNees. Back-to-back kills by Saran put the Tritons in front, 19-15, and a pair of late kills by McCluskey sealed the first set for UC San Diego, 25-21.
The Thunderbirds jumped out to an early, 8-2, advantage to begin the second set. McCluskey played a crucial role in narrowing the gap, 9-6, with two kills, supported by effective setting from Rome and Nepszy. Despite a strong push that included a critical block from Afonso and Nepszy to pull within one, 12-11, the Tritons ultimately fell short in the set, finishing 25-20 in favor of Southern Utah.
The third set began with Southern Utah taking an early lead once again, 8-2. UC San Diego responded with strong play from McNees and
Stefania Alupei, who each contributed key kills to narrow the gap. Despite a late surge from the Tritons, highlighted by Saran's service ace and a streak of points that brought the score to 23-21, Southern Utah closed the set with a 25-21 victory.
The fourth set commenced with tight competition as the Tritons and Southern Utah exchanged points. Saran's offensive presence was notable with multiple kills and a service ace, contributing to an early 6-3 lead for the Tritons. UC San Diego maintained a five-point advantage at 14-9 before Southern Utah responded with a series of points, leveling the score at 17-17.
Madison Johnson and McNees kept UC San Diego in contention with decisive kills. Despite UC San Diego tying the game at 25-25 with a block by Nepszy, Southern Utah capitalized on a late surge to clinch the set 27-25, concluding a tightly contested match.
TRITON TIDBITS
UP NEXT
The Tritons will remain in Flagstaff for the final match of the Lumberjack Classic, taking on Texas Tech on Saturday at 11 a.m. PT. The match will not be streamed but live statistics will be available via UCSDTritons.com.
Article partially generated with FanWord.
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.
