SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Gonzaga volleyball fell in straight sets (13-25, 22-25, 15-25) to Santa Clara in the second leg of its Bay Area road trip at the Leavey Center Saturday afternoon, despite a 14-kill effort from Zoe Thiros to lead the Bulldogs (4-15, 0-8 WCC).

Five other Zags recorded multiple kills in the three-set effort, with Autumn Larson (two kills) finishing with a game-high .667 hitting percentage. Keau Kamake'eaina produced 22 of GU's 25 assists while connecting on a pair of service aces and picking up nine digs — second on the team behind Alisa Kim's 13.

Santa Clara surged ahead early with game-high .500 hitting in the first set, getting a total of 17 kills to go with five service aces en route to a dominant 25-13 set win to take the lead.GU battled to a 20-20 draw in the second set thanks to an improved hitting effort, connecting on double-digit kills for the first time to go with a pair of service aces. The score tied seven times and the lead changed twice before the final stretch, but Santa Clara closed out strong in response, scoring five of the next seven to seal a commanding two-set advantage.

Even as the Broncos kept rolling in the third en route to a 9-3 start, the Bulldogs responded with a 4-1 swing to get back within three, capped off by an SCU attack error. But another 3-0 run from the Broncos put them ahead by six and GU didn't get any closer by match point as SCU connected on six more kills through the rest of the set to secure the sweep.

The Bulldogs return home to play host to Pepperdine on thursday at 6 p.m. in the Charlotte Y. Martin Centre. Live stats and streaming options will be available via GoZags.com. Follow @ZagVolleyball on IG and Twitter for updates and more.