Ava Mehrten’s Debut Appearance, Kill Completes Bears Sweep
BERKELEY – California volleyball (5-2) posted a pair of convincing wins on Friday at Haas Pavilion, facing both Utah Tech (4-2) and Tennessee State (2-6) on the first day of the Cal Tournament. The fourth and final team, Nevada (4-4), will take the court against the Bears on Saturday.
Vs. Utah Tech – Cal wins 3-1
The Bears started off strong in the first set, posting a 5-1 scoring run triggered by leading scorer Lydia Grote, before Utah Tech responded with a strong run of their own to reclaim the lead. The two teams then proceeded to exchange points, two-by-two, before Cal put together several small runs to take the lead for good and take the first set, 25-19, off a kill from Annalea Maeder.
Maeder continued her momentum into the second set, immediately delivering a service ace, but the Trailblazers found the energy to rally back and keep pace with the Bears’ energy. Both teams were capitalizing on each other’s errors, but neither truly pulled away until the very end, when Utah Tech’s offense roared to life to tie up the match on a 25-19 set victory.
Cal once again scored first to kick off the third set on a kill from Leah Schmidt, initiating a back-and-forth kill battle between the Bears and the Trailblazers. Although Cal’s offense faltered a bit, allowing a 4-0 run to the opposition, Grote’s 100th kill of the season sparked a sequence in which the Bears out-scored Utah Tech, 12-7, to clinch the third set with a score of 25-19.
Another Maeder service ace kick-started the fourth set; once again, Utah Tech’s offense surged, forcing Cal to call a quick timeout. On the Bears’ return to the court, they immediately set the tone, tying the score back up at 15-15 and then posting a 6-0 scoring run that included two straight kills from senior Sydney Lilomaiava. The Trailblazers attempted to respond, but any such ideas were quickly squashed by Cal’s ferocious offense; in the end, the Bears won the set, 25-17, for the 3-1 match final and their fourth win of the young 2022 season.
Vs. Tennessee State – Cal wins 3-0
The Bears hit their groove almost right out of the gate, putting together two 4-0 runs in quick succession to race out to a comfortable 12-5 lead before the Tigers found a little fire of their own, putting together a 4-0 run themselves to bring the score to 12-9, Bears. Cal responded with yet another 4-0 run, never…
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