The UCSD women’s volleyball team returned home this weekend after a five-game road trip where it beat San Francisco State University and Sonoma State University.
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The Tritons, now ranked No. 20 in Division II, overpowered the SFSU Gators. The Gators are now 0-22 this season.
UCSD started the match strongly and led by as much as 22-6 in the first game, which the Tritons won 30-13. Thirteen out of the 17 players on the Triton roster played in the game and recorded at least one kill.
Lauren Mills, Ashley Peterson and senior co-captain Kathleen Hentz led the team with six kills apiece. Freshman Teresa Ohta, who had 14 assists, and junior Jessica Bartter, who had 19 assists, split the time as setter.
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The Tritons went on to win the second and third games, which they won 30-22 and 30-14 respectively.
Behind the tough defensive play of Gator Kirsten Ulfig, who had seven kills and nine digs, SFSU fought hard and hung tough during the second and third games, but the Tritons were too much to handle.
“”We needed to communicate more because communication is key in order to add to the momentum of the game,”” Gator head coach Heather Sisneros said.
After their substantial win Friday night, the Tritons were prepared to face California Collegiate Athletic Association foe Sonoma State University on Saturday. Sonoma State, now 6-7 in the CCAA and 16-8 overall, had just notched a crucial win over Grand Canyon College on Friday night.
With a powerful starting lineup, UCSD took control of Saturday night’s game. Hentz, who had an outstanding hitting percentage of .522, pounded a remarkable 13 kills and Stacy Dunsmore, who hit .323, added another 11 kills as the Tritons buried the Cossacks. Ohta added 34 assists for UCSD. Jennie Wilson had 10 digs and ignited the Triton team when she served 11 straight points, helping UCSD to a commanding 19-9 lead in the second game.
Cossacks Kristen Graham and Christine Shiba led Sonoma State with 10 kills each. Shiba also had a match-high 18 digs, and setter Kathleen Gamboa logged 28 assists.
The Cossacks and the Tritons battled for possession of the ball, but the Tritons were again victorious, winning the match in three straight games, 30-20, 30-19 and 30-19.
Triton senior outside hitter and co-captain Laura Santerre did not start either match this weekend.
“”We have so much depth on this team and wanted to experiment with different combinations of players on the floor,”” said Triton head coach Duncan McFarland.
McFarland also noted that the “”excitement of being back at home and the high energy in the crowd helped motivate us to keep up our intensity throughout the matches.””
Indeed, the energetic crowd Saturday night totaled 918 — the largest crowd at a UCSD volleyball match since 1,335 attended the NCAA Division III championship match in 1997.
With these two wins, the Triton women’s volleyball team improved to 9-2 in the CCAA and 14-4 overall.
UCSD’s next match is on the road Oct. 18 at Cal State Stanislaus and is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.
