Score:  UC Davis 3, UC Irvine 1
Set Scores: 18-25, 25-23, 25-20, 25-17
Location: Irvine, Calif. (Bren Events Center)
Records: UC Davis 13-5 (8-1), UC Irvine 11-9 (5-4)
 
The short story: After dropping the first set, UC Davis volleyball showed its Aggie Pride, out hitting and out blocking UC Irvine over the next four sets to knock off yet another Big West opponent, solidifying the Aggies position at the top of the conference.

FIRST SERVE

• Senior opposite hitter Olivia Utterback had her third 20 kill match of the season, and her second against the Big West. Utterback finished with 20 kills on a scorching .500 hitting, digging 10 balls to go along with three blocks
• Junior outside hitter Jade Light had second-straight match with 17 kills, hitting .318, digging five balls and getting three blocks
• Sophomore setter Mia Starr set 45 Aggie kills, digging 14 balls and blocking three shots
• Sophomore middle blocker Ally Chandler finished with a team-high six blocks, her second-straight match with six blocks. Chandler also hit .294, adding eight kills
• UC Davis held UC Irvine to under .200 hitting in each of the final three sets

HOW IT HAPPENED

• UC Irvine used a run in the middle of the opening set to pull away from UC Davis, taking the first set 25-18
• It was the last set the Anteaters would win for the rest of the evening
• Things were close throughout the second set, with UC Irvine leading as late as 23-22, but the last three points would be Aggie points
• Following an Anteater attack error on what would have been set point, Utterback put the Ags on set point with a kill
• Junior outside hitter Victoria Vanos then wrapped up the set, smashing home the set winning kill to lock up a 25-23 Aggie set win to tie the overall match up
• UC Davis built out a lead through the third set, sitting at 23-17 late in the action
• The Anteaters kept the set alive, snagging a few points late. But Chandler smashed home a pair of kills, on assists from Starr, to lock up the final pair of points UC Davis needed to take a 25-20 third set win and a 2-1 lead in the match
• An early run by the Aggies put the final touches on the UC Irvine motivation to stay in the action, and when the Anteaters attempted to get within under five points at 18-14, junior setter Haden Bones served up an ace, holding serve for three-straight points as UC Davis pulled away to 22-14
• Kills from Utterback and Vanos put the Aggies on match point. And after a UC Irvine attack error, the Aggies celebrated a 25-17 fourth-set win.
• With the comeback finished, the Aggies wrapped up the 3-1 Big West victory

GAME NOTES

• Utterback now has 1,135 career kills, that places her seventh all-time in program history
• Utterback's 134 career aces places her second all-time in program history
• UC Davis now sits at 8-1 in the Big West, and with that they own first place in the conference, and after they play Cal State Fullerton on Saturday, Oct. 26 they will have faced everyone in the Big West at least once

UP NEXT: The Aggies return to the University Credit Union Center for a Saturday afternoon Big West matchup against Cal State Fullerton. The Oct. 26 match gets going at 1 p.m. Read Full Article