MERCED, Calif. – The University of California, Merced women's volleyball team swept Westcliff University on Thursday night inside the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium, 3-0 (25-8, 25-16, 25-23).
For the first time ever, the Bobcats (14-7, 10-1) have tallied four consecutive sweeps in California Pacific Conference play. The Bobcats sweep was their ninth of the season overall, tying a program-record that was first set in the 2013 campaign.
UC Merced swept Westcliff behind 49 kills and a .363 hitting percentage. Head coach Ai Prachumsri's team held Westcliff to just a .060 offensive output.
Sera Riley led the Bobcats stuffing the stat sheet with 12 kills, eleven digs, a career-high four blocks, and two service aces. She maintained a .455 hitting percentage and her double-double was her ninth of the season.
Kyra Miller dished out 20 assists to go along with a season-high eight kills on a .700 (8/1/10) hitting percentage. She is up to 567 assists on the season which is the fifth most in program history. Miller also added four digs and three service aces in the latest sweep.
Kennedi Baker and Semiramis Tanasescu finished with eight and seven kills, respectively, and both hit .500.
Morgan Wilson led the Bobcats blocking efforts with a three-set career-high five blocks, including one solo. Wilson also had five kills.
Alexa Ultreras was good for six kills and nine digs. Ellie Gordon added 12 assists, while Jaide Davis had seven digs and four assists.
UC Merced opened the night with an 8-1 run and scored five straight points with Miller behind the service line. All eight of those Bobcat points came via the kill, including three kills from Riley. Shortly after, back-to-back Baker kills put the Bobcats up 13-3 and the Bobcats extended their lead to as many as 15 points at 20-5. After a 3-0 Westcliff spurt, the Bobcats earned a sideout and three consecutive Riley kills pushed the Bobcats to a 25-8 win and 1-0 match lead. The Bobcats had 20 kills and just two errors on 31 attempts for a .581 hitting percentage in the first set.
The Bobcats continued their strong play in the second set and used a 9-3 run to go up 15-9. A little later, Wilson scored back-to-back points to push the Bobcats advantage to 18-11 and then a Miller service ace made it 21-12. The nine-point lead matched the biggest lead of the set. UC Merced also led by that margin at 23-14 and won the set by nine points, 25-16. Ultreras scored set point with a kill off a Jazmine Banks assist.
The third set was back and forth throughout with ten ties and seven lead changes before either team reached 20 points. Although trailing 18-16 and 19-17, the Bobcats did reach the 20-point mark first with strong play from Gordon. The Bobcats led 20-19 and then made it 21-19 with a Tanasescu kill. UC Merced and Westcliff traded attacks and sideouts until the end, with match point being a lengthy rally ultimately ending with a Westcliff error trying to play a free ball over the net.
The Bobcats dominated the season series against Westcliff sweeping all three matches. Prior to this year, the Bobcats had never beat Westcliff more than once in any season.
Up next, UC Merced will host La Sierra University on Friday, November 1. First serve on Hostetler Court inside the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium is scheduled for 2:00pm.
