Anteaters Make It Two Straight Big West Wins With Sweep Of Cal Poly
October 11, 2014 | Women's Volleyball
IRVINE, Calif. --- Cassidy Pickrell and Arielle Manz led the offensive effort as UC Irvine swept Cal Poly, 25-23, 25-20, 25-18 Saturday night at the Bren Events Center. The win was the second straight for the Anteaters, who improved to 12-7 overall and 2-3 in league action.
Neither team was able to take control of the first set, which was filled with extended rallies that led to 13 ties and four lead changes. UCI, which hit .200 at the first timeout, shook off the slow start and rallied to take a 20-17 lead, the largest margin of the set on a kill by Rosenfeld and two kills from Bubica. The Anteaters, who went on to hit .368 in the frame, kept the Mustangs from charging and took set point on soft floater from Pickrell. After a one-handed save by Lee to keep the ball in play, Cal Poly setter Taylor Nelson and middle blocker Savannah Niemen's miscommunication would close out the frame.
The Mustangs opened the second by winning the first two points but the Anteaters quickly took control by jumping out to a 6-3 advantage. Cal Poly whittled the lead to one at 8-7 on an attack error by UCI but Pickrell delivered on back-to-back plays to stretch the lead back to three (10-7). Anderson went to Pickrell for a third straight kill and Lee extended the rally with consecutive aces to force a Mustang timeout at 13-7. UCI's offense continued to hit at a high rate and stretched the lead to nine at 19-10 as Manz crushed a ball on the over-pass. Cal Poly chipped at the deficit to cut it to five at (22-17) and looked to make an even further dent but Ella Rosenfeld stuffed Niemen at the net to halt the run. An attempt by Raeann Griesen went wide for set point and UCI took the 25-20 win after Pickrell crushed an attempt down the middle.
Cal Poly opened the third by grabbing a slim 10-7 advantage but UCI used a 7-2 run to take an 18-14 lead on a bad set by Greisen. The pressure continued to mount for the Mustangs as Lee tied a season-best with her third ace of the match to widen the gap to five at 20-15. The ace by Lee sparked a four-point rally by the Anteaters, who took a 23-15 lead after Rosenfeld bounced a ball off the Cal Poly hands. A pair of unforced errors by the Anteaters highlighted a 3-0 stretch by Cal Poly but Anderson found Pickrell for the cross-court slam for set point and Niemen's shot on the quick set went wide to end the match.
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