MALIBU, Calif. (Aug. 31, 2023) – The UC Santa Barbara Women's Volleyball team (4-0) was back in action, kicking off this road trip in Malibu against the Pepperdine University Waves. It took all five sets to decide the winner of this thriller, but when the match was over, UC Santa Barbara was the team that came out on top (25-21, 25-19, 25-22, 25-16, 15-13).
 
FROM HEAD COACH MATT JONES
"The team did a great job of staying level headed even when we weren't executing cleanly early on. They trusted in their training and the scouting report and, eventually, the points started to come our way. That's a very good team we were able to beat after being down on their home floor. I'm very proud of our resilience."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
At the start of the first set, the Waves took an early lead. Despite the Gauchos staying within arms' length, Pepperdine wouldn't let them get any closer. Even with Michelle Ohwobete's offensive prowess and Macall Peed's 10 digs, the Gauchos were not able to pull out a win, dropping the first set 25-21.
 
The second set told a similar story for the Gauchos. The Waves took an early two-point lead as UC Santa Barbara hung close for multiple points. However, back-to-back service runs by the home team caused the lead to grow without a chance for the Gauchos to catch back up. This results in a 25-19 loss in the second set.
 
With being down two sets, the Gauchos needed to fight back to stay in this match, and that is exactly what they did. UC Santa Barbara's .326 hitting percentage in the third set compared to the Waves' .191 gave the visitors the much-needed advantage led by Grace McIntosh. Not only was she one of the team's two setters that led the offensive charge, but she had two multiple-point service runs that helped grow her team's lead. This well-rounded effort ultimately led to the Gauchos' 25-22 win in the third set.
 
As UC Santa Barbara lived to fight another set, their momentum continued to grow. Sitting on the back of the team's serving with no errors and three aces earned by McIntosh and Milan Rex, the Gauchos grabbed the early lead and never let go. This resulted in the biggest win margin of the day with a score of 25-16 in favor of the visitors.
 
It was time for extra volleyball in Malibu as the Gauchos and the Waves went point-for-point from the very start all the way until the score was tied at 10's. But once the Gauchos lost a challenge, a new fire was sparked beneath them. Peed went on a three-point service run to give her team a much-need cushion as they headed into the final points of this match. With a whole-team effort and kills from Andi Kreiling and Ohwobete, the Gauchos pulled off the reverse sweep to win their fourth game of the season, taking down the Waves for the first time since 2019.  
 
LOOKING AT THE NUMBERS

• Peed had a record night as she ended tonight's match with the second 30-dig performance of her career while adding on 11 assists for the first double-double of her career.
• Ohwobete held down the offense from the pin as she ended tonight's match with 21 kills. Along with that, she contributed 12 digs for her first double-double of the season and 17th of her career.
• Sophie Reavis had a stellar night, setting a new career-high in kills with 10. She also helped with the front row defense, totaling three blocks.
• The middle blockers dominated when it came to defending the net. Kreiling continued with her efforts from last weekend as she ended tonight's match with six blocks while Wuischpard put up a career-high four blocks. She also had an impressive night on offense, going 6-0-10 for a .600 hitting percentage.
• McIntosh, one of the two setters in the Gauchos' lineup, finished the night with the most assists, tallying 27. To go along with that, she also added on nine digs. Rex, the second setter for the Gauchos, put in a great deal of work from the service line as she led the team in aces with two.
• McKnight was a dominant force in the back row for the Gauchos as the senior tied her career-high in digs with 15.
• This was the third straight match for the Gauchos where they hit above .300 as a team. The team's outing against New Mexico State was the only match where UC Santa Barbara hit under .300, and even then, the team hit at an impressive .297. 

UP NEXT
The Gauchos will go even farther south as they head all the way to San Diego for the San Diego State Invitational. On the first day of this tournament, the Gauchos will take on the No. 6 University of Oregon Ducks. First serve is scheduled for 4 p.m. with live stats available to follow along with all of the action.