DAVIS, Calif. - Senior opposite Kendall Walbrecht pounded out 21 kills, senior middle blocker Aima Eichie tied her career high of 10 blocks and sophomore middle blocker Kelechi Ohiri hit a team-best .421, but UC Davis could not protect a 2-1 match lead in falling in five sets, 20-25, 25-23, 21-25, 25-21, 15-8 to Cal Poly in Big West Conference women's volleyball action at the Pavilion Saturday night.

The Aggies slip to 12-13 for the year and 5-7 in league play. The Mustangs improve to 15-8 overall and protect their third-place standing in the Big West race at 8-4.

Walbrecht, who finished with a .360 average and six block assists, missed her career kills high by just one. Ohiri committed just two errors on 19 swings while chipping in another seven of UC Davis' 15 blocks. Sophomore Malia Bolko led all players with 25 digs and was one of three Aggies with two aces.

For Cal Poly, four players had double-digit kills while four others had 10 or more digs. Sophomore Adlee Van Winden led her team with 19 kills, including five in the final set. Middle blocker Taylor Gruenewald added 17 kills and a .387 hitting average, while Alexis Clewis and Raeann Greisen each totaled 14 kills. Defensively, libero Katherine Brouker paced the Mustangs with 24 of her team's 84 digs.

UC Davis hit well in each of the first three sets, compiling averages of .250, .324 and .333, respectively. However, the Aggies plummeted to .139 in the fourth, then managed just three kills in the fifth. Meanwhile, Cal Poly had its best offense in the second and fifth frames, posting success rates of .366 and .318 in those two wins.

The trio of Eichie, Ohiri and Walbrecht combined for 8-for-11 hitting to boost UC Davis to a 15-10 start in the first set. The Mustangs responded with four straight to cut the margin to one, then a Gruenewald slide forged the first tie at 17-17. The Aggies pushed ahead with kills from Walbrecht and freshman Lauren Matias to regain a 20-18 lead, then Ohiri scored a kill and a block in UC Davis' 3-0 run to finish the win.

Gruenewald, who hit 6-0-8 in the first set, added five more in the second. Van Winden exploded for six kills in the second, boosting the Mustangs to an 11-7 lead. UC Davis answered with four straight, eventually tying the set at 11-all on an Emily Allen ace. Walbrecht then served up an ace to give the Aggies the lead at 13-12, igniting a 6-1 run that eventually set the board to 19-14. However, Cal Poly whittled away at the lead, with a cross-court shot by Van Winden equalizing at 23-23. The 2015 Big West Freshman of the Year then went to the service line for the final two points, allowing Cal Poly to tie the match at 1-1 at the break.

The Mustangs continued to roll into the third, with Gruenewald and Greisen helping to craft a 10-6 advantage. Once again, UC Davis fought back, eventually enjoying a run of eight unanswered that flipped a 12-8 deficit into a 16-12 lead. Walbrecht and Eichie each had a kill and a block during that stretch, although Cal Poly did most of the lifiting with four unforced errors. The Aggies held on the rest of the way for the set victory. Sophomore Brianna Karsseboom had a block assist and a kill, Bolko served up an ace, then Walbrecht fired a kill down the line to close out the frame.

In contrast to the second-set slugfest, the fourth set saw an uptick in defense. The Aggies posted five team blocks and 16 digs while the Mustangs tallied 19 gets on floor defense. Cal Poly ran off six straight to start the match, then protected that lead throughout despite two comeback efforts. Gruenewald tooled the UC Davis block to establish a 24-21 set point, then teamed with setter Taylor Nelson for a block for the winner.

Van Winden dominated the final frame, posting four kills in a 7-2 start. Greisen added three kills while junior middle blocker Savannah Niemen knocked down another two kills. Defensively, the Mustangs picked up 16 digs in the abbreviated set, with six by freshman Jessica McRoskey.

The Aggies return to road action for a Tuesday night match at UC Riverside.