Sept. 6, 2006

Box Score

SAN JOSE, Calif. - Redshirt freshman Courtney Lorusso's 17 kills led four Spartans with double-figured offense as San Jose State swept UC Davis, 32-30, 30-26, 20-18, in a non-conference women's collegiate volleyball match at Spartan Gym Wednesday evening.

The Aggies fall to 1-6 on the season, having lost four straight. The Spartans, coming off five-game losses against regional strengths UC Santa Barbara and San Francisco, improve to 4-2.

Senior Rachel Keener and sophomore Chantal Paschetta each led UC Davis with nine kills, while freshman Britt Erickson and sophomore Kelly Patterson each added eight. Patterson enjoyed the best all-around match by an Aggie, as she hit .571 on 14 attempts and posted a team-best six block assists on defense. Freshman libero Avreeta Singh paced the UC Davis floor defense with 15 digs.

For SJSU, junior Jennifer Senftleben added 16 kills, while Niki Clement and Colleen Burke chipped in 12 and 11, respectively. Burke hit .455 for the match and matched Senftleben's total of two service aces.

The opening game was easily the most evenly contested of the three frames, with neither team holding a lead larger than the Aggies' four-point advantage at 13-9. Game 1 featured 14 ties and seven lead changes. UC Davis took a 30-29 game point on a kill by Keener, but the Spartans finished with a 3-0 run to take a one-game lead. Astruc and Patterson each recorded five blocks in that game.

Lorusso turned up the offensive heat in Game 2, hitting .500 with eight kills on 14 swings. The Aggies led as late as 23-21, getting a Paschetta kill followed by a Singh service ace. Lorusso then pounded out back-to-back kills to tie the game at 23-23 then aded another at 25-23 to help SJSU seal a two-game advantage.

The Spartans ran away with the third game, opening with a 12-5 lead and stretching the margin to as much as 23-8. Patterson had four kills in five attempts during Game 3 and UC Davis outscored SJSU down the final stretch but the Spartan lead proved insurmountable. LoRusso hit 6-1-12 for the finale, leading her team to a .308 success rate.

UC Davis returns to action on Tuesday, September 12 with a road match at USF. The team's alumnae match, originally slated for Saturday, was cancelled last week.

UC DAVIS (kills-aces-blocks) - Katelyn Astruc 1-0-5, Kelly Patterson 8-0-6, Britt Erickson 8-0-1, Chantal Paschetta 9-0-0, Rachel Keener 9-0-0, Nicole Read 5-0-0, Michelle Nelson 1-1-0, Jenny Kennedy 0-0-0, Avreeta Singh 0-1-0, Carson Lowden 0-0-1, Renee Ibekwe 0-0-0, Katie Wilson 0-0-0, Jenny Pierce 0-0-0. Totals 41-2-6.5. Assists - Katelyn Astruc 35. Digs leaders - Avreeta Singh 15, Chantal Paschetta 12.

SJSU (kills-aces-blocks) - Courtney Lorusso 17-0-0, Niki Clement 12-0-1, Sarah Christensen 0-1-0, Kristina Conrad 2-0-2, Jennifer Senftleben 16-2-0, Colleen Burke 11-2-1, Kristal Tsukano 0-1-0, Jessie Shull 0-1-0, Thao Pham 0-1-0. Totals 58-8-2.0. Assists - Kristina Conrad 48. Digs leaders - Jessie Shull 23, Kristina Conrad 11.