Sept. 2, 2007

Box Score

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. - Junior outside hitter Renee Ibekwe scored a career-high 23 kills and hit .474 while senior middle blocker Kelly Patterson added 16 kills and eight blocks, leading UC Davis to a 30-25, 28-30, 30-23, 30-27 win over Cal State Bakersfield in non-conference collegiate women's volleyball action at the Icardo Center Sunday.

The Aggies pick up their second straight win after opening the season with four straight losses, moving to 2-4 overall. The Roadrunners drop to 3-4 overall, having ended a three-match win streak with a five-game loss to Saint Mary's Saturday.

Both teams are former member of the California Collegiate Athletic Association. The UC Davis victory ends an 18-match win streak in the series between the two teams, a run that dates back to the 1992 season.

Ibekwe had hit 22 kills in two previous matches this season, including Saturday's win over Idaho State. She committed just five hitting errors in 38 attempts. Patterson hit .500 for the match, allowing just two errors in 28 swings. Other Aggie highlights included sophomore Tori Hooper, who posted five blocks and a match-best three service aces; and libero Avreeta Singh, who led UC Davis with 19 digs.

Outside hitter Sarah Norman paced the Roadrunners with 22 kills, while junior middle Rosemary Stribling added 16 kills and a .467 success rate. Mystie McNaughton led all players with 29 digs on floor defense.

Ibekwe posted three kills down the final stretch of Game 1 to help UC Davis pull away from a tight 23-23 battle. She scored the go-ahead point at 24-23, then hit back-to-back kills during a 4-0 Aggie run that set up a 29-24 game point. Kayla Varney shut the door with a side-out kill to put UC Davis up to a 1-0 match score.

The Roadrunners dominated much of Game 2, holding leads of 17-9 and 26-15. Facing a 29-22 deficit, UC Davis scored six straight points to crawl back to within one. Patterson had a block assist and a kill in that run, while CSUB struggled to three hitting errors and a setting miscue. Senior outside hitter Jodi Hardin finally ended the late Aggie surge with a kill that evened the match at 1-1.

UC Davis led for almost the entirety of Game 3, although timely hitting helped turn a 13-7 Aggie edge into a 16-15 battle midway through. Tori Hooper's solo block put UC Davis up by 24-20, then Ibekwe had two kills in her team's run of four unanswered points to end the frame.

Early offense by Ibekwe and Patterson put the Aggies up by 10-3 early in Game 4, although Hardin registered consecutive kills in a 5-0 CSUB run that cut the lead to two. The `Runners later scored four straight to tie the game at 16-16, then briefly took a 17-16 lead on back-to-back Stribling kills. Ibekwe later served up four straight points to push UC Davis up by a 22-18 advantage, but Hardin's offense helped CSUB score four straight to tie the frame at 22-22.

Setter Carson Lowden's ace helped the Aggies take a 26-23 lead late in the match, and key service errors ended any `Runner threats to re-tie the game. Patterson's kill set up match point for UC Davis at 29-27 as Hooper served up the final two points in the win.

The Aggies return home to host the Hallmark Inn Aggie Invitational on September 7 and 8. San Francisco, Boise State and Idaho round out the four-team tournament field.