Box Score Oct. 29, 2015 Box Score
SPOKANE, Wash.-The Gonzaga University volleyball squad was just two points away from forcing a deciding fifth set Thursday night, but Santa Clara rallied to take the fourth set and the match 3-1 at the Martin Centre in Spokane.
Santa Clara won the first set convincingly to take an early advantage in the match. The Broncos scored four in a row for a 7-4 lead, but the Zags drew back even at nine with that ninth point coming on a quick attack from freshman setter Faith Smith. After a Santa Clara sideout, the visitors scored the next six points for a 16-9 lead. Redshirt senior Savannah Blinn found the floor for a sideout, but the Broncos' strong play continued as they took the set 25-12.
Gonzaga bounced back to begin the second set strong, winning each of the first three points on kills from Blinn, Emmy Allen, and McKayla Ferris. The Bulldogs turned that into a 7-2 lead after three consecutive Santa Clara errors, and later on in the frame, Allen, Blinn, and Kaylie Loewen posted back-to-back-to-back kills for a 10-point GU lead at 16-6. The Broncos then cut into that difference a bit with 5-1 run, but Loewen and Jordan Gasser blocked a Bronco shot for a sideout, and the Zags won the next three for a 21-11 lead. Santa Clara again scored four in a row to come within six, but they'd get no closer as Allen downed a kill to give Gonzaga a 25-17 win in the second set.
The Bulldogs took an early 3-1 lead in the third set with kills from Blinn and Ferris and a Santa Clara service error, but the Broncos rattled off five straight points to take a permanent lead. After that, the Zags only strung together a maximum of two points at a time and were unable to make a dent in the Santa Clara lead. The Broncos won the set 25-15.
In the fourth, Gonzaga took an early 2-8 lead after back-to-back stretches of three and four consecutive points. The two sides traded points for a bit, but Santa Clara scored four in a row to pull within three. Blinn finished off a pass from Smith for a sideout, but the Broncos took four of the next five to pull within one at 14-15. Gasser halted the run with a sideout, and a block from Folger and Gasser gave the Zags a three-point advantage once more. The Broncos slowly whittled down the Gonzaga advantage again, tying the frame at 22 points apiece. Blinn once again gave the home squad a lead with a kill, her 15th on the night, but Santa Clara won the final three points for a 25-23 set victory and a 3-1 match win.
Bulldog Bites:
- Blinn led the team with 15 kills against Santa Clara after posting 12 at Santa Clara earlier in the year. It's the 12th consecutive match with double-digit kills for the opposite hitter, and her 13th of the year with at least 15; she's landed exactly 15 kills in each of the last three matches. Blinn is currently third on Gonzaga's all-time kills list with 1,596, 96 kills away from Lisa Petticord's 1,692 for second place. Also, Ferris was one kill away from reaching double-digits for the second match in a row Thursday night.
- Defensively, freshman Tiyana Hallums led the way for Gonzaga with 18 digs, one off her career high set Oct. 24 versus Portland. Hallums has now gotten the start at libero in the last five matches and in eight West Coast Conference matches altogether. The Honolulu, Hawaii native has also reached double digits in digs during six matches this season. Allen also dug up 10 Santa Clara attacks, while both Loewen and Folger tallied four total blocks apiece.
Zag Speak:
Gonzaga head coach Dave Gantt:
"It's disappointing for everyone because I thought we had an opportunity to compete at a level that would really springboard us into the second half of the conference season. We created an opportunity to win that fourth set, but we just gave it away. We just weren't up to it in the latter third of the fourth set. They're a good team; we just can't let up. Kudos for Santa Clara for making the plays."
"In the first and third sets, we let them up fast and never really got in it; in the second set, we got up really fast and kept the spread. In the fourth, we did what we needed to to get the spread, but we just let them back in. Top 25 volleyball is basically what you have to play, and we're physically capable, but we're not always stubborn in key situations. My conversation before the match was basically a mindset of 'there will come some times where you have to throw a little grit on the ground and get after it', and I'm not sure we did that as much tonight as we have shown in the past."
Next Up:
The Zags (13-10, 4-6 WCC) will wrap up the three-match homestand with a contest against San Francisco on Saturday, Oct. 31. First serve for the Halloween showdown is scheduled for 12:00 p.m., again in the Martin Centre. Earlier in the month, the Dons edged Gonzaga in five sets in San Francisco, but not before the Zags eliminated a two-set deficit at intermission by winning the third and fourth sets. Each of the last five matches between Gonzaga and San Francisco has gone to five sets.
