Nov. 4, 2005

Box Score

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The UC Santa Barbara women's volleyball team won its 13th consecutive home match Friday evening in the Thunderdome - equalling a school record - by sweeping UC Riverside 30-14, 30-27, 31-29.

With the victory, the Gauchos improved to 14-8 overall and 9-2 in the Big West Conference, maintaining their one-match lead in the league standings over idle Long Beach State. The Highlanders - who have never beaten UCSB in 16 all-time meetings - fell to 14-8, 3-7 in the conference.

The first frame saw Santa Barbara surrender its fewest points in any game this year, hitting a scintillating .429 in the process. Leading 21-14. the home team closed things out with a dominating 9-0 run that included a pair of service aces by freshman outside hitter Lauren McLaughlin. Meanwhile Gaucho senior middle blocker assisted on three blocks during the spurt before sophomore Bethany Johansen closed things out with a kill.

Game two was much more hotly-contested, as UCR built an 11-8 advantage thanks to Kimberly McNeal's service ace. UCSB stormed back with six unanswered points, and remained on top until the visitors caught up at 23-23. Riverside retook the lead at 25-24 when Jamie DeKiewiet's serve hit the floor, but an Emily Hendrickson ace sandwiched by put-aways from Janine Sandell and Blackshire put the Gauchos back up 27-25. Blackshire again hit paydirt to set up game point, and McLaughlin then slammed one home to give the three-time defending Big West champs a 2-0 cushion heading into intermission.

Undeterred, the Highlanders jumped out to an 8-4 advantage in the third frame, prompting Santa Barbara head coach Kathy Gregory to call timeout. Her troops closed the gap, but UCSB would not enjoy a lead of its own until 18-17 when junior Olivia Waldowski's step-out spike forced Riverside into a timeout situation. Neither squad led by more than a point until back-to-back kills courtesy of Kym Murphy and DeKiewiet gave UCR a 27-25 cushion. The visitors inched closer to victory at 28-26 following another put-away, but the Gauchos reeled off three unanswered points, two coming on Waldowski kills. Santa Barbara couldn't capitalize on its first match point, but when Blackshire and McLaughlin connected on consecutive slams, the 407 fans in attendance left happy.

While Sandell paced the Santa Barbara attack with 15 kills - the 21st time she has done that in 2005 - Blackshire had an evening to remember with 14 put-aways on 20 errorless swings for a scintillating .700 hitting percentage. The Capistrano Beach, Calif., native also amassed a match-high five total blocks, while Waldowski contributed eight kills. A trio of Gauchos amassed double-digit digs, including Hendrickson with 13. For the fifth time this season UCSB hit above .300, connecting at a .305 clip.

DeKiewiet's 13 kills led all Highlanders, followed by 10 from her fellow senior Valerie Bueno. McNeal matched Hendrickson's match-best 13 scoops, although UCR hindered its effort by hitting just .134 on the evening.

The Gauchos return to action on Saturday, Nov. 5, hosting Cal State Fullerton in the Thunderdome at 7:00 p.m. The Big West Conference showdown will then air on College Sports Television the following day at 3:00 p.m.