Box Score
LOS ANGELES – Cal State L.A.'s women's volleyball team let a big one get away Saturday night in California Collegiate Athletic Association action.
The Golden Eagles built a quick 2-0 lead against UC San Diego, only to see the Tritons storm back for a 15-25, 21-25, 25-14, 25-23, 15-12 win in the Eagles Nest in the Billie Jean King Sports Complex. Cal State L.A. (14-10, 11-9 CCAA) saw its three-match winning streak come to an end, while UC San Diego (17-7, 14-6 CCAA) kept pace with Cal State East Bay for second place in the conference.
Hillary Williamson had a match-high 20 kills to lead UC San Diego, which won its 10th straight match. Roxanne Brunsting had 11 kills, 27 set assists and four blocks, while Katie Condon had 10 kills and 20 digs.
UC San Diego, after a slow start, wound up hitting at a .204 percentage, while Cal State L.A. cooled off after a hot start and wound up hitting at a .179 clip. UC San Diego hit at a .438 percentage in the final set with seven kills and no errors, while the Golden Eagles hit just .083 with nine kills and seven errors.
UC San Diego had a slim 58-57 edge in kills and an 11-9 advantage in blocks. Both teams struggled earning points on their serve, UC San Diego picking up only two aces with 15 service errors, while Cal State L.A. had no aces and 12 service errors.
The Golden Eagles had their best stretch of the match in the opening set when they turned a 6-5 deficit into an 18-10 lead and never looked back. A kill by Hamilton got the Golden Eagles to a 23-13 lead, a kill by
Natalia Gonzalez got the Golden Eagles to set point and a kill by Mora ended it.
The Golden Eagles had to rally from a small deficit in the second set as well, trailing for the last time at 16-15. Back-to-back kills by Gonzalez and a block by Mora and Gonzalez broke a 17-17 tie and the Golden Eagles led the rest of the set. A kill by Gonzalez made it 23-21 and consecutive attack errors finished the set.
After the intermission, UC San Diego jumped out to a quick 8-3 lead and led throughout the third set. Back-to-back aces by Condon highlighted a set-ending 9-0 run by the Tritons.
The Tritons grabbed control in the fourth set as well and held off a late Cal State L.A. rally. After a kill by Brunsting got the Tritons to set point at 24-19, a service error and three straight attack errors by the Tritons made it 24-23 before a kill by Williamson finished the set.
Kills by Mora and Gonzalez gave the Golden Eagles a quick 2-1 in the fifth set, but that was the only lead the Golden Eagles would get. UC San Diego broke a 5-5 tie with a 3-0 run and never trailed again. Cal State L.A. pulled to within two points three times but could never get closer.
Cal State L.A. will conclude its regular-season next week with road matches at Sonoma State and Humboldt State.
