SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Gonzaga volleyball pushed Santa Clara to four sets, before the Broncos held off the Bulldogs on Saturday, 25-14, 14-25, 20-25, 15-25.
THE ACTION
First Set – Gonzaga 25-24
- After a back-and-forth start to the match, GU used a 6-0 run to open a 6-5 lead to 12-5. Viktoriya Ivanova had back-to-back aces during the run, along with a kill and a block assist by Autumn Larson.
- After the Broncos (9-5) closed the gap to 12-8, the Zags stretched the margin to 18-10 following a kill from Jody Smith
- With the score 19-14 in favor of Gonzaga, Julliette Russell rocketed consecutive kills, Alisa Kim served an ace, and a kill from Larson completed the 6-0 run to seal the first set victory for the Bulldogs.
- Gonzaga finished the first set with a .429 attack percentage, with 13 kills to one error, and four aces.
Second Set – Santa Clara 25-14
- A SCU attack error and a kill by Zoe Thiros got GU (3-10) off to a good start in the second set.
- The Broncos would respond and take the lead, but an attack error after off a Thiros serve made the score 8-6 for Santa Clara.
- A kill by Grace Ehler cut the SCU lead to 16-10, but the Broncos would close the set on a 9-4 run to win 25-14.
- Thiros, Smith, and Ehler all had two kills in the second set and Nia Damuni had eight assists.
Third Set – Santa Clara 25-20
- The teams shared the lead to open set No. 3. Block assists by Thiros and Smith evened the score at four.
- Gonzaga trailed 18-10 but closed the margin to 20-16 capped by a kill from Russell.
- The Bulldogs fought off set point, trailing 24-16, GU went on a 4-0 run to close the gap, but SCU won the set 25-20.
- Tyra Schaub and Maggie Rickert both finished the set with three kills. Damuni had eight assists, while Kim had eight digs.
Fourth Set – Santa Clara 25-15
- Santa Clara jumped out to an early lead in the fourth set, but a kill by Rickert capped off a GU run to make the score 9-8 SCU.
- The Zags remained close and another kill from Rickert kept the deficit at one, 12-11.
- Santa Clara would close the match on a 13-4 run, winning the third set 25-15.
UP NEXT
Gonzaga hosts its first West Coast Conference home match of the season versus San Diego in the Martin Centre on Thursday at 6 p.m.
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