IRVINE, Calif. -- UC Irvine picked up its sixth straight victory with a 3-0 win (25-8, 25-11, 25-11) over Gonzaga at the Bren Events Center Saturday afternoon.

The Anteaters improve to 6-2, stringing together six wins for the first time since 2017 (Sept. 29-Oct. 21). They also increased their games streak to 18 in a row.

Gonzaga falls to 2-7 on the year.

Setters Kelly Negron and Indy DeSmet guided UCI to a .356 (46-10-101) hitting percentage, the second best mark of the year. Negron recorded 11 set assists and 11 digs, while DeSmet had 22 set assists and seven digs.

HEAD COACH ASHLIE HAIN SAID
"We have some physical players on this team, but they have become gritty and are learning how to win together. I enjoy seeing their response in a broken or chaotic play.  We are becoming a better team with each game and they have a team-first attitude right now. I am excited to build on that."

INSIDE THE NUMBERS
>Middle blocker Onye Ofoegbu had a team-best 12 kills, hitting .526 (12-2-19). She also had two block assists
>Junior Joy Umeh followed with nine kills
>Outside hitter Emma Spindt tied her season-high with eight kills, hitting a season-best .438 (8-1-16) at the pin
>Freshman Keelan Williams continues to make an impact in her second match, tying her career-high with seven kills and sharing the team lead with three blocks (1 solo, 2 assisted)
>Libero Campbell Jensen had a match-high 17 digs and three set assists

FIRST SET
>A Joy Umeh kill sandwiched in between two Gonzaga hitting errors gave UC Irvine an early 3-0 lead
>The Anteaters continued to roll, going up 7-1 on an Emma Spindt kill
>UCI kept a commanding lead as it pulled ahead 13-3 on a double block from Onye Ofoegbu and Keelan Williams
>The 'Eaters stayed out front and used a late 8-3 run, capped by a Williams kill, to run away with the 25-8 victory

SECOND SET
>It went back-and-forth in the early going with UCI holding an 8-5 advantage
>An Ofegbu ace then started a 7-0 Anteater rally that increased the margin to 15-5
>The Bulldogs pulled back within single digits before three-straight kills from Umeh made it 20-8
>UC Irvine kept its foot on the gas, scoring the final four points with a Kendra MacDonald kill ending it at 25-11

THIRD SET
>Gonzaga opened the frame with a kill for its first lead of the match
>That lead was short-lived, however, as the 'Eaters reeled off seven unanswered to go up by six
>After trading points, Ofoegbu started to heat up, hammering her ninth kill of the match straight down inside the 10-foot line
>That sparked the Anteaters as they continued on a 9-0 run for a 22-7 advantage
>During that stretch, Ofoegbu had four kills, Williams had two and Bailey Darnell had an ace
>UCI finished strong with a Kiani Stanton kill closing out the set and match at 25-11
 
NOTES
>Negron's double-double was her second of the season and the seventh by an Anteater in 2022
>Jensen has recorded digs in double-figures in all but one match this season

UP NEXT
>UCI will travel to Phoenix, Ariz. to take on Grand Canyon Friday (Sept. 15) at 6:00 p.m. and Cal Baptist (Sept. 17) Saturday at 3:30 p.m. in the Big West/WAC match-up.