UC Irvine improved to 7-0, tying the school’s
best start in history with a 30-20, 30-21, 30-20 win over Cal State Fullerton
(6-2) Wednesday at Crawford Court. The Anteaters used a .529 hitting percentage
and held the Titans to a .206 average to match the 1981 team’s feat
of seven consecutive wins to open the season.
Senior outside hitter Kelly Wing (Murrieta Valley HS) led the team with
21 kills and recorded her best hitting percentage of the season, connecting
on 21 of 33 attempts with one error to finish with a career-high .606
average.
Senior Sami Cash (Riverside/John North HS) and sophomore Trisha White
(Lakeport/Clear Lake HS) each added 10 kills apiece. Setter Ashlie Hain
(Thousand Oaks/La Reina HS) had a match-high 49 assists, recorded a career-high
five kills and was two digs shy of her fourth double-double. Libero Keegan
Featherstone (Manhattan Beach/Mira Costa HS) led the team with 10 digs
and two service aces while senior opposite Dana Kurzbard (Murrieta Valley
HS) recorded a match-high five block assists in the win.
The Titans were led by Alyssa Opeka and Lauren Goins, who each had nine
kills. Jaclyn Owen totaled 10 digs while setter Jenna Carney put up 31
assists.
The Anteaters opened up a three-point lead at 10-7 in game one on service
aces by Jennifer Moser (Elk Grove/Christian Brothers HS) and White, but
the Titans rallied to tie the game at 11-11 behind consecutive kills by
Goins and Owen. With the game knotted at 16-16, UCI combined four kills
and two Titan attack errors to take a 23-17 lead. Featherstone added two
aces to increase the lead 26-18.
In game two, UCI jumped out to a 6-2 lead and never looked back. Fullerton
would not threaten, hitting .175 for the game.
In game three, the Anteaters again held the early lead and began to pull
away behind Wing’s six kills. The Titans connected on 11 of 33 attempts
with eight errors to hit .091 and Cash sealed the match with three straight
kills.
