LONG BEACH, Calif. (KEYT) - No. 4 seed UC Santa Barbara swept fifth-seeded CSUN 3-0 on Wednesday at the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid in the first round of The Hawaiian Islands presents the 2025 Outrigger Big West Women's Volleyball Championship.
With the win, the Gauchos improve to 23-8 on the season and advance to take on top-seeded UC Davis on Friday at 3 p.m. in the semifinals. In just the third iteration of The Big West postseason event, the victory marks UCSB's first, falling in the semifinals in 2023 and narrowly missing the field in 2024.
UC Santa Barbara dominated the first set with a commanding 7-0 start, capitalizing on three attack errors by CSUN's Leah Miller and a service ace from Michelle Zhao. Big West Freshman of the Year Gabi Martinez registered two kills early in the set, and the Gauchos maintained pressure with solid blocking to claim the 25-13 win in the first.
UCSB leveraged a strong defensive performance to earn a 25-17 set victory in the second frame. The Gauchos' Emma McDermott and Jordyn Johnson combined for critical blocks and Zhao served up two aces to keep the advantage late in the set.
The terminal frame saw another key 6-0 run for the UCSB offense. Eva Travis played a pivotal role, registering four kills, while All-Big West First Team performer Layanna Green contributed with a crucial block that thwarted CSUN's attack. Kiersten Schmitt sealed the set with a kill from Zhao.
Travis emerged as a key contributor for the UCSB team, leading the offensive efforts with 12 kills and a hitting percentage of .500, while adding a pair of aces. Five players finished the night with multiple blocks with McDermott tallying six total blocks, including one solo, with freshman Jordyn Johnson in on seven total blocks.
All told, UC Santa Barbara recorded a .296 attack percentage while amassing 13 total blocks as CSUN managed just .036 hitting in the match.
Hailey Brockway led the Matadors with 11 kills and a match-high nine digs with senior Leah Miller adding seven kills to the stat sheet. Taylor Dunlap and Katie Kolar combined for 24 assists in the match with Paige Sentes digging out nine balls for the CSUN defense. The Matadors cap the season with a 17-13 overall record and their first appearance in The Big West Championship bracket.
(Article courtesy of Big West).
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