Box Score LAS VEGAS – UCSB (2-1) concluded their first weekend of action with another contentious matchup, as the team downed Albany (0-3) in four sets (27-25, 23-25, 25-23, 25-21) on Saturday morning at the Cox Pavilion.
Lindsey Ruddins continued her tear through the UNLV Invitational after leading the Gauchos with 19 kills on 57 swings with a pair of blocks. Through the tournament, Ruddins finished with a gaudy total of 59 kills, averaging 4.92 per set, earning her a spot on the all-tournament team.
"This team's strength is definitely our competitiveness," Ruddins said. "We all have a great fight in us, we all want to win, and we all want to win for each other. We're young, we still have a lot room to improve and we're figuring a lot of stuff out."
The other Gaucho who made all-tournament was Phoebe Grunt who exploded with a career-high 17 kills, crushing her previous personal best of 13 which she hit in three different matches last year. The senior starting clicking starting in the second set, as she put away 15 kills in the final three games. Over the weekend, Grunt was UCSB's most efficient attacker with a .446 clip, finishing with 32 kills as well as 11 blocks, both ranking second on the team.
Albany was placing the ball all over the floor and the Gauchos responded with 82 combined digs with four players reaching double figures. Chanel Hoffman and Hannah Juley paced the team with 17 apiece, while Lindsey Ruddins (securing her second double-double of the tournament) and Emilia Petrahci both finished with 12.
To open the match, the Gauchos found themselves battling in already their fourth extra point set of the young season. UCSB played ahead for most of the set and thwarted a late push from Albany, which erased a 21-17 deficit with a 6-1 run.
But UCSB shrugged off the Great Danes thanks to a recently subbed in Elizabeth Sheffield who gave the Gauchos set point at 24-23 with a kill.
"We have a lot of depth," head coach Nicole Lantagne Welch said. "If someone's a little off, we could always send someone in and see if they can make a difference. It's a great thing to have and we're excited that we saw that this weekend."
And while Albany hung around until extra points, they did not have an answer for Ruddins who registered the final three kills for the Gauchos, closing the game at 27-25. The outside hitter was looked to often late in sets, as she picked up eight of her kills after the Gauchos reached the 20th point.
The teams then traded off 25-23 victories with UCSB picking up the third set.
Just as in the first set, the Gauchos reached the 20-point mark first, but Albany rallied back and made it a one-point game at 22-21 following a 6-2 run. And also like the first set, Sheffield and Ruddins came up with key plays down the stretch to pull out the win. First, Sheffield lifted UCSB to set point with a kill and Ruddins followed her up with the clincher.
Late game heroics weren't needed in the fourth set, as the Gauchos maintained at least a four-point edge after scoring four unanswered points, highlighted by two aces from Sheffield.
UCSB will make its home debut next weekend when it hosts the Thunderdome Classic, which will feature Baylor, CSU Bakersfield, seven-time defending Mountain West Champion Colorado State, and Pitt. Season tickets are now available and can be purchased online, at the Ticketing Office in the Intercollegiate Athletics Building, or over the phone at 805.893.UCSB (8272).
