IRVINE, Calif. – UC Irvine couldn't hold off UCSB in a 3-2 loss that took almost three hours at the Bren Events Center Saturday.

UCI (8-4, 1-1) suffered its first loss at home this season (6-1) after winning the first two sets (26-24, 25-22) and watching UCSB take the final three (25-21, 25-17, 15-13). The Gauchos (6-6, 2-0) scored the final five points of the fifth set to clinch the victory.

UC Santa Barbara totaled 17 blocks, the most in the Big West season. The Anteaters hit .170 (63-34-171) the second lowest percentage of the season.  

Outside hitter Marianna Bertolone shined in the loss with a career-high 20 kills and four total blocks. She also added seven digs. Her 20 kills are tied for seventh most in the Big West this season.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS
>Middle blocker Onye Ofoegbu ended the night with 16 kills and two block assists
>Libero Carly Richter had a season-high 11 digs
>Setter Kelly Negron recorded her fourth double-double of the season with 27 set assists and 10 digs
>Middle blocker Kiani Stanton had a career-high seven block assists
>Joy Umeh added 11 kills and four block assists
>UCSB was led by Tallulah Froley with 18 kills. Michelle Ohwobete had 14 and Tasia Farmer added 12.
 
FIRST SET
>UCI started the match with a huge block by Kiani Stanton and Joy Umeh, 1-0
>UCSB would go on a 4-1 run to move in front 4-3
>With the score tied at 8-8, the Gauchos would score four of the next five to move in front 12-9
>UCSB would hold a 14-10 lead before the Anteaters rallied with a Gaucho attack error, kill by Onye Ofoegbu and service ace by Campbell Jensen to close within 13-14
>A UCSB service error was followed by a solo block by Marianna Bertolone  and a servce ace by Onye Ofoegbu to knot the score at 18-18
>Following a Gaucho kill, UCI would have three consecutive kills, two by Bertolone and one by Umeh to push the Anteaters in front 21-19 and force a UCSB timeout
>UCSB would answer scoring the next four, three on UCI errors to move back in front, 23-21
>The Gauchos would hold set point 24-22 before UCI rallied on a kill by Stanton followed by one from Ofoegbu, 24-24
>Back-to-back UCSB attack errors gave UCI the set 26-24
>Ofoegbu was dominant, hitting .875 (7-0-8)

SECOND SET
>Kills by Ofoegbu and Bertolone and a Gaucho attack into the pin gave UCI a 6-5 lead
>Another Bertolone kill and a UCSB attack error moved the gap to 8-6
>UCI strung together three in a row courtesy of kills by Ellen Veargason and Umeh making the Anteater lead 11-7
>UC Santa Barbara would climb back with four straight of their own to move in front 13-12
>Two Gaucho errors helped UCI sneak out to a 19-17 lead
>UCI wouldn't relinquish the lead, winning the set on a kill by Ofoegbu and Gaucho attack error, 25-22

THIRD SET
>A UCI service error started a 7-1 run by UCSB which included two aces and two blocks to make some separation 12-7
>Trailing 14-9, five UCSB errors, three on blocks assisted by Stanton and two kills by Bertolone put UCI in the lead 15-14
>Santa Barbara would score five straight to flip the script and lead 22-19. UCSB had two blocks in the run
>UCSB would win ona kill by Tallulah Froley, 25-21
>UCI would hit .098 (12-8-41)

FOURTH SET
>UCSB took control early, 9-3 on UCI hitting -.417 (1-6-12) and three Gaucho blocks
>A kill by Umeh and two UCSB attack errors got UCI to 12-15
>UCI would get no closer than three the rest of the way as UC Santa Barbara would win the set 25-17 to force a fifth set

FIFTH SET
>A kill by Bertolone was followed by consecutive blocks both assisted by Stanton to give UCI a 6-4 lead
>Kills by Bertolone and Umeh moved the score to 8-5 and the teams switched sides
>UCI was up 13-10 on a kill by Bertolone before UCSB had a kill followed by three UCI errors, a kill by Tasia Farmer and another UCI attack error for the set and match, 15-13

NOTES
>UCI is 0-2 in five set matches this season
 
UP NEXT
UCI will hit the road, traveling to UC Davis Thursday (Sept. 29) and UC Riverside Saturday (Oct. 1).