ANGWIN, Calif. – The University of California, Merced women's volleyball team picked up two more sweeps at the Cal Pac Jamboree on Friday afternoon, defeating Pacific Union College and Simpson University.
With the victories, the Bobcats (13-7, 9-1) have officially clinched a berth in November's California Pacific Conference Championships. It marks the Bobcats tenth conference tournament appearance in the last eleven seasons. UC Merced's magic number to win their first ever regular season championship is three.
Sera Riley led the Bobcats with 16 kills in each match. Alexa Ultreras put down 21 total kills and tallied 32 digs, while Kyra Miller combined for 48 assists across the two matches. Ultreras, who had a double-double against PUC, passed Olivia Harden for sixth in program history with 601 career kills. The Merced, Calif., native is now eight kills away from moving into the top five all-time.
Morgan Wilson tallied at least eight kills in each match and Kennedi Baker added 12 total kills. Both Bobcats were stellar defensively against Simpson with six and four blocks, respectively. Baker's six blocks doubled her previous career-high.
Other notables include 32 assists on the day for Ellie Gordon, 20 total digs and five service aces from Destiny Lei Ramilo, and 17 digs from Riley. The trio spread their totals out evenly across the day.
Match One | UC Merced 3, PUC 0 (25-16, 25-19, 25-22)
The Bobcats got off to a hot start scoring the first five points and opened the match on a 10-3 run overall. Head coach Ai Prachumsri's squad continued to have success and grabbed a double-figure lead as early as the 18-8 mark. Wilson and Riley had four kills apiece in the early goings. The two teams then traded 5-0 runs, and then after a couple more PUC points, Ultreras tallied back-to-back kills to give the Bobcats a 25-16 win in the first set. UC Merced operated at .400 success rate offensively in the opening frame. PUC hit .000.
UC Merced never trailed in the second set and used a 5-0 run to create separation taking a 14-7 lead highlighted by a pair of Riley kills. PUC closed the deficit to four points on multiple occasions, but the Bobcats didn't let PUC garner any real momentum on their way to a 25-19 win and a 2-0 match lead. Riley and Wilson scored the Bobcats final two points in the frame with a kill apiece.
The Bobcats continued their dominance in set three getting out a 14-3 advantage. Prachumsri's squad had two different 5-0 runs in the point-scoring surge, including the latter with Jazmine Banks behind the service line. Banks had one ace. Shortly after, Jaide Davis notched an ace to go up 16-6. PUC attempted to battle back mounting a 9-1 run, but Riley put a quick halt on their comeback attempt with three kills in a five-point stretch. However, PUC's fight didn't stop there and the home team pulled within a point at both 21-20 and 23-22. Then, Gordon set Ultreras for a kill and set up her middle blocker Semiramis Tanasescu for match point to complete the sweep.
Match Two | UC Merced 3, Simpson 0 (25-19, 25-17, 26-24)
The Bobcats registered a three-set season-high eight blocks in their second sweep of the day. Baker (6 blocks), Wilson (4), Tanasescu (3), and Miller (2) all found success defensively.
Simpson punched first with a 4-1 lead but then the Bobcats first block of the match shortly after tied the set 5-5. Three rallies later, the Bobcats grabbed their first lead benefiting from a Red Hawk attack error. Both teams continued to trade points resulting in a 13-13 tie. Then, Baker and Wilson combined for a block which ended up being up the final lead change of the set and the start of an 8-3 run that gave the Bobcats a 21-16 advantage. After a UC Merced service error, the Bobcats scored three straight to garner a set point opportunity which was scored on the third try to take a 1-0 lead in the match.
The Bobcats led 6-3 in the second set highlighted by back-to-back Baker kills. Simpson responded with a 7-0 run forcing the Bobcats to call a timeout. The timeout was used to perfection as the Bobcats came out of the huddle embarking on a 17-3 run to take a 23-13 lead. Prachumsri's squad put down eight kills in the run in addition to two blocks and two service aces. Wilson had 2.5 points and Ultreras had two points including an ace. Wilson went on to score the Bobcats 24th and 25th point with a kill as UC Merced won the set 25-17.
UC Merced got off to a good start in the third set leading 5-1 and 10-4. However, the six-point lead was the biggest of the set and Simpson clawed all the way back to take their first lead of the frame at 18-17. Simpson added a point to their advantage at 20-18. Both teams then traded 3-0 runs and it was 23-21 Simpson in front when Prachumsri called a timeout. Riley had a kill upon restart of play, but Simpson answered and went behind the service line for set point trying to stave off the sweep. Ultreras earned the Bobcats a sideout with a kill and Baker matched Ultreras to tie the set 24-24. Simpson's offense failed to click, and a final kill from Ultreras finished off the sweep for UC Merced winning the third set 26-24.
UC Merced heads into the rest of the season with eight sweeps, its most since 2021.
UC Merced also improved to 25-4 all-time against PUC and 22-7 all-time against Simpson.
Of note, when Serena Choi took the court today she passed Jaysonna Johnson for second all-time in sets played. Choi has now appeared in 382 sets over her career that started in 2020.
Two more Bobcats moved up the program's record books.
Riley passed Rachael Schaefer for ninth with 70 career aces, while Tanasescu moved ahead of Olanasaze Ojo for fourth in program history with 172 career blocks.
Up next, UC Merced starts a four-match homestand on Thursday, October 31 against Westcliff University. First serve from the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium in Merced, Calif., is scheduled for 6:00pm.
