Oct. 30, 2009
Santa Barbara, Calif. - Rebecca Saraceno and Leah Sully both posted double-doubles to pace UC Santa Barbara (17-5, 7-3) to a 3-0 Big West Conference volleyball win over Cal State Fullerton (12-10, 3-6) Friday night at The Thunderdome.
With the 25-27, 21-25, 16-25 loss, Fullerton drops its third match in a row for the second time this year and finished 2009 with a split in the season series with Santa Barbara. The Titans beat the Gauchos 3-0, back on Oct. 3 in Titan Gym. The Titans also remain winless on the road this year, dropping to 0-7.
The Big West's kill leader, Saraceno, led all players with 13 kills, adding 11 digs and a block assist in the win. She and Sully (10 kills, 15 digs) were the only Gauchos in double figures offensively, pacing Santa Barbara to a .209 team attack percentage.
The Titans hit .169 and were led by freshman Kayla Neto who tallied 11 kills and averaged .385 in the accuracy department. Neto also tied for the match high in blocks, collecting three block assists and one solo. Junior Erin Saddler also put up 11 kills and a pair of solo blocks on the night, while Torrie Brown was right there with 10 kills and a block in defeat.
The biggest scoring discrepancy came at the service line. The Gauchos commanded a nine-point advantage in the serving department, as they stymied the Titans eight times led by Sully, who found the floor five times on her own. The Gauchos committed just four service errors, while the Titans had six miscues with just one ace, provided by Saddler.
Both teams played even at the net playing to a 6.0-6.0 tie in blocks. Kasey Kipp matched Neto at the net stuffing a share of four blocks for the home team.
Fullerton's Cami Croteau and Santa Barbara's Chelsey Lowe both tied for the match lead with 19 digs as both teams defended the attack at virtually the same clip (63 digs to 62 digs in favor of UCSB).
The Titans will again look for their first road win of 2009 Saturday night as they take on Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo. First serve will occur at 7 p.m.