Cal Ranks Fourth In The Nation In Total Blocks
BERKELEY – California volleyball (2-1) will compete at its second tournament of the young 2022 season this week with scheduled matches against Utah Valley (1-3) on Sept. 1 at 4:00 p.m. PT and Northern Arizona (1-2) on Sept. 2 at 1:00 p.m. PT, held at Lockhart Arena in Orem, Utah.
“We came away from this past weekend with some good positives that we look to build on,” said head coach Sam Crosson. “Our serving and blocking have made some nice positive strides, and we are also more physical at the net as blockers. Our movements are becoming more efficient and our timing of blocking together has improved, which is very helpful in scoring points.
“It’s great to see progress happening,” he finished. “Our group is looking forward to the coming matches.”
As a team, the Bears are 4th in the nation in total blocks (39.0) and 10th in blocks per set (3.25).
Junior Lydia Grote leads the conference with 57 total kills, a figure that is also 10th in the nation. She also boasts an impressive 29.5 total points (6th NCAA) and 5.79 points per set (8th NCAA) thus far. Freshman Sophie Scott also made noise on the national front last weekend, totaling 20.0 blocks that put her at ninth-most in the NCAA.
The Bears have never faced Utah Valley prior to this season. Cal has defeated Northern Arizona in each of their three previous meetings, the most recent of which was a 3-0 sweep in 2002.
LYDIA LEADS
Junior Lydia Grote posted a fantastic first weekend to the 2022 season, totaling a conference-leading 57 kills over three matches (including a career-high 22 kills on Aug. 27 against UC San Diego). Going into this weekend, she is currently 6th in the nation in total points (29.5), 8th in points per set (5.79) and 10 in total kills. She is also second in the Pac-12 in kills per set (4.75).
USA VOLLEYBALL TAKES NOTICE
Juniors Lydia Grote and Leah Schmidt participated in the 2022 USA Volleyball National Team Open Program on Feb. 25-27, scoring invitations after stellar sophomore seasons. Grote’s 2021 campaign included a 21-kill game (vs. Utah, Oct. 17) and a 15-kill, .344-hitting percentage outing against Washington State (Nov. 11). Schmidt, meanwhile, was named to the 2021 All-Tulane Tournament team and subsequently posted the third-most kills on the team (200) during the season as one of Cal’s most prolific…
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