Sept. 11, 2010
UC Davis 3, Seton Hall 0 | UC Davis 3, Fresno State 0
BERKELEY, Calif. - Sophomore outside hitter Allison Whitson posted 12 kills in each end of a Saturday doubleheader, while junior middle blockers Betsy Sedlak and Katie Denny each earned all-tournament honors at the Hilton Garden Inn Classic women's volleyball tournament at California Saturday. The Aggies posted a 25-14, 25-17, 25-22 sweep of Fresno State during their morning match, then delivered a 25-21, 25-21, 25-17 sweep against Seton Hall in the nightcap.
UC Davis improves to 5-3 for the year. Seton Hall falls to 3-7, while Fresno State dip to 3-4 overall.
Sedlak hit an errorless 11-for-20 in the early win over the Bulldogs, then added .357 hitting with seven kills on 14 swings in the three sets against the Pirates. Denny, who led the Aggies statistically against 10th-ranked Cal on Friday, combined for 15 kills and nine blocks in the two Saturday victories. Senior libero Kayla Varney accounted for 29 digs for the day, including 17 against FSU.
UC Davis scored 11 straight points in the first set against Fresno State, mostly behind the serving of sophomore defensive specialist Kaitlyn Plum. Then the Aggies hit .355 to ride a 12-4 start to the second-set victory. The Bulldogs gave chase late in the third set, with a Marissa Brand ace cutting the Aggie lead to just 21-19. However, Whitson had two kills down the stretch to help UC Davis complete its sweep.
In Saturday's nightcap, Seton Hall committed four hitting errors in a six-point stretch to transform a 6-6 tie to a 12-8 Aggie lead. UC Davis protected its margin the rest of the way, taking a 23-18 lead on a kill by redshirt freshman Devon Damelio, who made her collegiate debut with a solid 6-1-11 offensive night.
Whitson and Denny each scored two kills to push the Aggies to a 8-3 start in the second set, again never relinquishing the margin despite a late threat. After the Pirates' Meghan Matusiak made it 21-19 on a kill, Denny put down a pair to boost UC Davis to a 23-20 lead. Damelio later scored the winner to lift the Aggies to a 25-21 win in the second, and a 2-0 match lead.
Damelio had two kills and Sedlak posted a pair of block assists as UC Davis scored seven of eight midway in the third, taking a 14-7 lead. Damelio's solo block against Krissy Wrobel highlighted a late 3-0 move by UC Davis, helping to secure the sweep.
Denny and Sedlak joined Cal's Carli Lloyd, Adrienne Gehan and Shannon Hawari on the all-tournament team. Fresno State's Brand and Seton Hall's Matusiak also earned such honors, while Golden Bear outside hitter Tarah Murrey was named MVP.
UC Davis returns to the Pavilion for its home opener against Sacramento State on Tuesday, then hosts four teams in the Aggie Invitational on September 17 and 18.
