SPOKANE, Wash. — Despite standout performances from Cara McKenzie and Juliette Russell, Gonzaga volleyball (6-13, 2-6 WCC) fell to Santa Clara in the Charlotte Y. Martin Centre Saturday, succumbing to the Broncos (7-11, 3-5) in straight sets (21-25, 16-25, 22-25).

Russell and McKenzie combined for 20 of GU's 34 total kills, with 18 of them coming in the latter two sets. McKenzie's .389 hitting average led the Bulldogs with Russell's .348 average not far behind. Kennedy Croft served up a team-high two service aces, and Keau Kamake'eaina added another while generating 27 of GU's 31 assists.

Russell also paced the Bulldogs at the net, connecting on four block assists to lead both teams in that category with Kamake'eaina adding three and McKenzie and McKenna Marshall both producing two apiece. The duo also had the most digs for GU, with Croft getting 11 and Kamake'eaina nine.

GU led 15-12 after Russell's first kill of the day and two consecutive SCU attack errors, but the Broncos tied it up at 16-all with a 3-1 run and the Zags couldn't extend the lead beyond two for the rest of the set. A 4-0 run from the Broncos pushed their lead to 23-19, and a late two-point surge fueled by another kill from Russell and an attack error came up short. 

The Broncos got off to a hot start in the second, building a four-point lead slowly over the first 14 points for a 9-5 lead. GU started to rally after two consecutive kills from Russell and an ensuing five-point swing gave the Bulldogs a 10-9 lead, but SCU responded with four unanswered scores to retake control of the set en route to a 16-25 win that doubled their advantage.

A decisive third set was the closest, with eight ties and five lead changes as well as a game-high 14 kills from GU, but the Broncos took advantage of late errors to weather a late 3-0 push that included a kill from Zoe Thiros and Kamake'eaina's ace to close out the match.

Up Next

The Zag's homestand continues on Thursday with a matchup with No. 24 Pepperdine (13-2, 5-1) in the Martin Centre at 6 p.m.. Check GoZags.com and follow @ZagVolleyball on Twitter and Instagram for up-to-date game time and ticketing information, coverage and more.