SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – UC Santa Barbara Women's Volleyball made a statement in their home opener, shutting out the previously undefeated Kansas State on Thursday evening. After receiving votes in the Sept. 8 AVCA National Rankings, Santa Barbara made good on their nominations by quickly dispatching the Wildcats 3-0. ?

The Wildcats entered today's match having never dropped a set this season. The Gauchos immediately changed that, taking out the 4-0 Wildcats in a swift match that left the Cats four and one.

FROM HEAD COACH MATT JONES
"Nice balanced offensive attack by us," Jones said. "Defensively, we served well and executed our scouting report. Nice way to start off at home."

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Gauchos came out determined to halt the Wildcats before they could get a handle on their new environment. The first set was tied up until 11-11, after which the Gauchos began to climb ahead. Santa Barbara managed a 15-11 lead that eventually increased to 20-13. They maintained their pace and finished the set with a nine-point edge, winning it 25-16 after Milan Rex landed a service ace for the final point.

The Wildcats made a push in the second, narrowing the Gauchos' margin of victory to just two points, who won 25-23. The teams traded clusters of points throughout the set, with each team gaining a lead of several points at a time before the other team did the same. Eventually, after both teams made four-point runs at the end of the set, Layanna Green and Kiersten Schmitt made a block to close it out for the Gauchos.

The Gauchos had an early lead in the third, managing five of the first six points. They gradually built a 19-10 lead before closing out the set with another 25-16 win.

Eva Travis once again provided double-digit kills (18), bringing her season total to 110, which puts her atop the Big West kill tally. She is first in points, leading with 121 total and 5.04 per match. Travis is also second in kills per set, with 4.58.

Green had a spectacular hitting percentage against the Wildcats, landing 10 out of 12 attempts for a decimal of .750. She rose five places through the Big West individual rankings after tonight's match and now stands at fifth in the conference for overall hitting percentage with .368.

Jordyn Johnson also continued her performance streak tonight, making seven kills and hitting .583. Additionally, the freshman put up four block assists, the most of anyone on the team. Sophie Reavis saw her first action of the season and made a kill off her first swing of the match. Ayva Ostovar made a season-high three aces while Anna Boatner added a kill and a block assist to her season totals.

Collectively, the Gauchos hit an impressive .352 and counted 14 block assists. Santa Barbara now leads the Big West in blocks per set, with 2.58, as well as points per set, with 17.21. They sit second with assists per set (12.21) and kills per set (13.33).

Tomorrow, the Gauchos will face the Vanderbilt Commodores at 4 p.m. in the Thunderdome.