FULLERTON, Calif. – Santa Clara mounted a comeback to claim the final two sets on Saturday afternoon at Titan Gym, and earned a 3-2 (11-25, 25-22, 16-25, 25-23, 15-9) victory over Cal State Fullerton at the Fullerton Classic presented by Embassy Suites.
The Broncos (10-4) finished the tournament with a record of 3-1, recording wins over CSF, San Diego State and Brown, while falling to Oregon State.
The Titans (6-6) have one remaining match at the Fullerton Classic, taking on Oregon State at 7:30 in Titan Gym.
Santa Clara's Taylor Miton recorded a double-double with a match-high 17 kills while adding 11 digs. Kayla Lommori totaled 15 kills in the Broncos' win, while it was Alyssa Anderson who directed the offense with 26 assists.
The Titans were led by Kayla Neto's 14 kills, while Bre Moreland chipped in 13 and Julie Consani dropped in four service aces. CSF also matched a season high with 10 aces.
Gabrielle Dewberry led the Titans with 30 digs and the teams totaled 13 blocks apiece.
Fullerton used a 14-0 run in the first set to turn a 6-6 tie into a 20-6 advantage as the Titans claimed the first game by the dominant score of 25-11. Moreland totaled three kills during the stretch.
The clubs went into the third set even at one game apiece, and Cal State Fullerton had a minimal 5-4 advantage early on. The Titans manufactured a 11-3 run to take a 16-7 lead in the crucial third game, thanks to Leah Best and Lauren Kissell combining for three blocks, and Holland Crenshaw totaling two kills and a solo block.
In the fifth and final deciding set, Santa Clara posted a .500 attacking percentage compared to a .053 clip for Cal State Fullerton.
The match produced 17 tie scores and six lead changes.
Notes: The all-time series between Santa Clara and Cal State Fullerton is now even at 9-9…the Titans played their first five-set match since a 3-2 loss at Pacific on Nov. 12, 2011.
FULLERTON CLASSIC
Day Two
Match Five: Santa Clara 3, Brown 0
Santa Clara (9-4) improved to 2-1 at the Fullerton Classic with an early-morning 3-0 (25-17, 25-14, 25-21) sweep of Brown (3-5). The Broncos hit at a clip of .405 as Taylor Milton led the club with 13 kills.
Match Six: Oregon State 3, San Diego State 1
The Beavers remained undefeated at the Fullerton Classic on Saturday afternoon with a 3-1 (24-26, 25-20, 25-19, 25-19) victory over San Diego State (at Titan Gym. OSU was led by Camille Saxton's 22 kills.
