SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — Lewis & Clark College volleyball wrapped up its opening weekend on Saturday with two matches at the University of California-Santa Cruz's Slugfest. The Pioneers battled Occidental College in the afternoon before a rematch with the host Banana Slugs in their final match, dropping both contests in straight sets.
THE BASICS
Occidental 3, Lewis & Clark 0 (25-20, 25-18, 25-20)
(Lewis & Clark 0-3)
(Occidental 1-1)
UC Santa Cruz 3, Lewis & Clark 0 (25-22, 25-21, 25-15)
(Lewis & Clark 0-4)
(UC Santa Cruz 2-1)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Junior transfer
Kaitlyn Jensen paced the Pioneers on Saturday with 12 kills, 25 digs and four aces across the two matches. Fellow juniors
HB Schuett (nine kills),
Isabel Meleán-Williams (eight kills),
Christi San Diego (seven kills) and
Ruby Kuerschner (six kills) each contributed at least five kills. Kuerschner also dished out a team-high 26 assists and matched Jensen with four aces.
On defense, senior
Reilyn Sabado finished with 19 digs on the day, second on the team behind Jensen. Sophomore
Ainsley Mochrie and Kuerschner added 10 digs apiece. San Diego and senior
Abigail Warrick (three kills) led the blocking effort with five each, while Schuett chipped in four.
MATCH ONE
Jensen led the way with eight kills and added a career-high 16 digs. Schuett posted a career-best six kills while hitting .385 and matched her career-high with three blocks. Meleán-Williams added six kills and six digs.
Sabado anchored the defense with 14 digs, tying her career high. Kuerschner ran the offense with 15 assists and three aces, finishing with five total points.
Lewis & Clark's strongest push came in the first set. Down 20-14, the Pioneers rattled off six of the next seven points, highlighted by two kills from Jensen and one from Schuett, to cut the deficit to 22-20. Occidental answered with a 3-0 closing run to secure the frame and carried the momentum through the next two sets, finishing with seven aces and out-hitting Lewis & Clark .167 to .065.
The Pioneers ended with 27 kills and five team blocks. Sabado recorded her first career kill, and Warrick registered her first solo block. San Diego and Schuett also added solo blocks.
Match Two
In their second matchup of the weekend with UC Santa Cruz, the Pioneers pushed the hosts in the opening two sets before fading in the third.
Lewis & Clark nearly stole the first frame after trailing 22-15. A 5-1 rally included back-to-back blocks from San Diego — one with Warrick and one with Jensen — and an ace from junior
Kenzie Edwards to pull within 23-20. On set point, Kuerschner added a kill, and UCSC committed an error, but the Banana Slugs closed it out 25-22.
The Pioneers rallied again in the second set. Down 22-14, Jensen sparked a 7-2 run with a kill and back-to-back aces before UCSC finished the frame 25-21. The hosts opened the third on a 10-4 run and never looked back.
San Diego led Lewis & Clark with six kills on .267 hitting and four blocks. Kuerschner and Warrick each contributed multiple blocks. Jensen added nine digs, and Mochrie finished with seven digs and two aces from the libero spot.
BY THE NUMBERS
- First-year Ariah Potts made her collegiate debut against Occidental, recording her first career assist and four digs. She added four more digs against UC Santa Cruz.
- The Pioneers totaled five solo blocks Saturday, with Schuett recording two.
- Kuerschner led the team with three solo blocks in the tournament. San Diego finished with 11 total blocks, and Warrick added nine.
- Meleán-Williams tied her career high with six digs against Occidental, matching the mark she set the day before vs. Redlands.
- Edwards and Jensen shared the team lead with seven service aces each in the tournament.
WHAT'S NEXT
Lewis & Clark returns to Portland for its home opener on Friday, Sept. 5, against Schreiner University. First serve is set for 7 p.m. in the Pamplin Sports Center as part of the Lewis & Clark Invitational.
