LONG BEACH, Calif. – The UC Santa Barbara Women's Volleyball team took on CSUN today in the first round of the 2025 Outrigger Big West Women's Volleyball Championship presented by the Hawaiian Islands. They made quick work of three sets, sweeping the matadors for the second time this season to move on to the next round.
FROM HEAD COACH MATT JONES
"It was a pretty clean effort across the board. We were pretty disciplined defensively and didn't have to discuss too many things in time outs," Jones said. "We have all the confidence in the world in this group and we're excited. Credit to Northridge, they've done a really nice job over the last two years."
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Gauchos got off to a 7-0 start in the first, following the momentum set in motion by Jordyn Johnson and Kiersten Schmitt who put up a block for the first point of the match. CSUN trickled in a couple of points over the next minutes, but the Gauchos were indomitable. They went on another run, this time making five points to put them ahead 15-5. The Gauchos took care of the Matadors almost immediately, cleaning up the first set 25-13. The Gauchos exited the first hitting .350, while they kept their competitors at a -.030 status.
CSUN had more of a grip in the second, keeping up with the Gauchos pace and only trailing by two for most of the set. They managed a tie at 13-13, but once the score hit 16-14, the Gauchos began to pull away. They ended it 25-17 with a kill by Schmitt.
The Gauchos had a healthy buffer between them and the Matadors in the third, never dipping below a four point lead after reaching 8-4. At 21-12, they led by nine before they wrapped it up at 25-18.
Eva Travis excelled on the offense, dealing 12 kills and hitting .500 to earn the Player of the Game accolade. Neither Travis nor Schmitt committed an attack error during this match.
Santa Barbara had incredible team stats as well, as they totaled 12 team blocks and five service aces. The Gauchos now hold a 15 game win streak over CSUN and lead the series 45-9.
UP NEXT
The Gauchos will take on UC Davis on Friday, Nov. 28 at 3:00 p.m.
