Oct. 29, 2010
Final Stats
IRVINE, Calif. - Sophomore outside hitter Allison Whitson hit 17 kills with a .536 attack average while junior middle blocker Betsy Sedlak added 12 kills and four blocks, helping UC Davis score a 25-15, 25-20, 25-22 sweep of UC Irvine in Big West Conference women's volleyball action at Bren Events Center Friday night.
The Aggies, who never trailed in any of the three sets, improve to 16-7 for the season and 7-3 in conference matches. The Anteaters dip to 5-18 overall and 1-9 in Big West play.
Sedlak, who leads the conference with a .431 hitting average, committed only one error in 17 swings to finish at a .647 success rate. Senior opposite Melanie Adams added 9-1-23 offense with four blocks, while senior libreo Kayla Varney picked up 18 digs. Whitson scored her fourth double-double of the season, contributing 10 digs to her team-high offensive numbers.
Whitson stormed out of the gates with four kills in a 9-3 start to the first set, providing the Aggies a lead they never surrendered. UCI's Juliane Piggott scored a solo block and a kill to close the gap to 10-6, then a Kari Pestolesi kill later brought the UC Davis edge to just 13-9. However, Whitson answered with two kills and a block assist in a 5-0 run, inflating the Aggie lead to nine. The Anteaters never recovered to closer than seven. Borch put down the winner after an 'Eater service error provided UC Davis with a 24-15 set point.
In similar fashion to the opener, the Aggies jumped out to a fast start, crafting an 8-3 lead with the help of two blocks. Piggott served up consecutive aces during three straight Anteater points, cutting the margin to 8-6, but UC Davis junior Katie Denny posted a block assist and an ace to help her team claim six of the next eight points. Down the stretch of the second frame, Alexandra Hauser and Taylor Smith teamed up for a block, then Piggott put down a kill to allow UCI to within a 20-19 margin. But Sedlak fired three kills in a 5-1 finish, putting UC Davis ahead 2-0 in the match scoring.
The Aggies scored 33 kills with just seven hitting errors in the first two games, hitting a combined .347 during that span. Sedlak hit 6-for-8 in the middle frame while Whitson connected on seven kills in the first.
Thanks to strong hitting by freshman Shannon Fleming, the Anteaters hung tough in the early going of the third set, standing within a 10-9 deficit after Piggott and Hauser combined on a block. Adams converted the side out to end UCI's mini-rally, then followed with a block assist to help push the lead to 13-9. Whitson delivered a kill and block assist to boost UC Davis to four straight points, extending the lead to 18-11, but the 'Eaters again recovered to within a single tally. Hauser had two blocks and Fleming served up two aces in a 7-1 stretch.
UC Irvine managed to tie the third set at 22-22, hoping to take its first lead of the entire match. However, Sedlak's kill ended that threat and sent Varney to the service line. The senior libero served up the final two points, with Adams and Denny combining for the winning kill to complete the sweep.
Varney had seven of her team's 23 digs in the third set, helping to hold UCI to just .050 team hitting.
Fleming hit eight kills on 13 swings to lead UCI overall. Half of that production (4-1-6) came in the third set. Sophomore libero Kristin Winkler recorded 18 digs to match Varney's total.
The Aggies complete their weekend with a Big West match at Cal State Northridge on Saturday.
