The Golden Eagles started quickly and never looked back in a 25-16, 25-18, 25-17 victory over Academy of Art in the Cal State L.A./Cal Poly Pomona Tournament. Cal State L.A., which also beat Simon Fraser in four sets earlier in the day, improved to 3-0 in the three-day tournament.

 

The Golden Eagles used a balanced attack once again to post the win. Cal State L.A. hit at an efficient .325 clip and limited Academy of Art (1-2) to just .012 hitting. The Golden Eagles had a big edge in kills (37-23) and blocks (9-3). Cal State L.A. also had a 10-3 advantage in service aces.

 

Marquis Mora led the way with nine kills in 13 swings for a .615 percentage. She also had a team-high five blocks. Natalia Gonzalez added eight kills and one block, while Zuzana Cizova had seven kills and two blocks.

 

Dan Yang had a team-high 10 kills for Academy of Art.

 

Amrita Tuladhar had 29 set assists and also added four kills, four service aces and four blocks.

 

Academy of Art got back-to-back aces from Ashley Irvine to open the match, but Cal State L.A. used a strong serving run by Cizova to open up a 13-7 lead. Two kills by Gonzalez, a service ace by Tuladhar and a block by Briana Fields and Kassie Faulkner helped Cal State L.A. open up a 21-10 lead. A kill by Faulkner got the Golden Eagles to set point at 24-15 and a kill by Mora ended it at 25-16.

 

Cal State L.A. jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead in the second set behind the serving of Tuladhar and got a strong serving run from Cizova to build a 17-4 advantage. Academy of Art cut the deficit to 20-14, but Cal State L.A. never let the lead dip below six points and ultimately closed out the set on a kill by Mora.

 

Cal State L.A. once again moved out to a sizeable lead in the third set, 14-7, but Academy of Art scored four straight points to make it 14-11. A kill by Fields and a service ace from Kaitlynd Carroll stopped the run and Cal State L.A. led comfortably the rest of the way.

 

In the first match of the day, the Golden Eagles got 14 kills from Gonzalez and 13 kills from Cizova and went on to beat Simon Fraser, 25-19, 25-22, 19-25, 25-14. Cal State L.A. hit at a .285 percentage, while Simon Fraser hit at a .245 clip. The Golden Eagles held a slim 7-6 edge in blocks and had an advantage in kills, 54-40.

 

Simon Fraser (0-2) was led by Marina Liarsky, who had 12 kills and 13 digs. Kelsey Robinson added 10 kills and five digs.

 

Mora had eight kills and a team-high five blocks for Cal State L.A., while Fields and Faulkner had seven kills each. Tuladhar had 39 set assists, two service aces and six digs. Stefanie Gay had a team-high 17 digs.

 

The Golden Eagles trailed in the first set, 18-15, before scoring five straight points to take the lead for good. A kill by Cizova, a block by Gonzalez and Mora, a kill by Gonzalez and an ace by Cizova put the Golden Eagles ahead. An ace by Gay eventually ended the set.

 

Cal State L.A. had its hands full again in the second set. The Golden Eagles broke a 19-19 tie after a Simon Fraser service error, kills by Faulkner and Cizova, an ace by Carroll and an attack error by Simon Fraser. After the Clan staved off three set points, a kill by Cizova ended the set.

 

Simon Fraser took control of the third set early to extend the contest. The Clan opened up an 18-12 lead and never relinquished it. Kills by Liarsky and Jordan Drezet finished the set for Simon Fraser, 25-19.

 

Cal State L.A., though, responded well in the fourth set, scoring the first four points behind the serving of Tuladhar and never looking back. The Golden Eagles had a 16-5 edge in kills for the fourth set, including five by Gonzalez and four by Mora.

 

Cal State L.A. will conclude play in the tournament on Saturday at 7 p.m. against Dixie State College. Earlier that day in the Eagles Nest, Dixie State will face Simon Fraser at 11 a.m. and Academy of Art will face Simon Fraser at 5 p.m.