UCLA
Cal State Fullerton
22nd-Ranked Bruins Sweep the Weekend at Fullerton Classic
September 21, 2014 | Women's Volleyball
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Note: UCLA's 'home' matches for Oct. 15 (vs. Oregon) and Oct. 17 (vs. Oregon State) will be played at Crossroads School in Santa Monica. Both matches are at 7:30 p.m. and are free admission, as are the four contests at Pepperdine.
FULLERTON, Calif. - Senior Karsta Lowe had a match-high 17 kills en route to being named the Most Valuable Player of the Fullerton Classic, as the 22nd-ranked Bruins completed a weekend sweep with a three-set victory over Cal State Fullerton on Saturday. Set scores were 25-22, 25-20, 25-12.
The Bruins (9-2) hit .333 for the match, their 50th-straight win when eclipsing the .300 mark. Freshmen Reily Buechler and Olga Strantzali each had eight kills, with Strantzali committing only one error in 17 attempts (.412) and Buechler recording a .357 percentage.
Sophomore Claire Felix, who joined Lowe on the All-Tournament Team, had five kills, while sophomore Jennie Frager recorded four kills and six blocks. Senior Julie Consani had 35 assists, sophomore Taylor Formico notched eight digs and junior Rachel Inouye added six digs.
The Titans (6-7) held their lone leads of the opening set at 5-4 and 6-5. UCLA posted runs of 5-0 and 7-1 to go ahead for good. Two Lowe kills, a Frager kill and two Fullerton errors led to the first five points, and after a sideout, kills from Strantzali and Lowe put the Bruins up 12-7. At 16-14, back-to-back kills by Strantzali and two in a row from Lowe extended the visitors' advantage to six at 20-14.
A 4-1 Titan run got the home team to within three at 21-18, but a Buechler kill and a Fullerton attack error made it 23-18. UCLA had four set points, and while the Titans saved half of them, a Felix kill on attempt three gave the Bruins a 25-22 win. Lowe had seven kills to pace the Bruins, Strantzali added four and Felix tallied three. In a great offensive set for both teams, UCLA held a .467-.321 hitting advantage.
Fullerton held a few early two-point leads in the second set, but a 5-0 UCLA run on a Lowe kill, a Frager solo block, a Consani/Frager combo roof and two Titan errors made it 10-7. The Bruins didn't trail for the rest of the set, seeing their lead stay between two and six. At 16-14, a Strantzali kill and back-to-back Fullerton attack errors made it 19-14.
Neither team scored more than two points in a row for the rest of the set, which was fine for the Bruins, who had a Titan attack error finish off a 25-20 victory. Lowe notched six of the Bruins' 11 kills in the second set, which was decidedly more defensive, as UCLA hit .176 and held the Titans to a -.054 clip. The Bruins had four blocks, with Frager taking part in all of them.
Early on in the third set, there were five ties and four lead changes. With the Titans up 7-6, the Bruins exploded with an 8-1 run to break it open. The first four points came on two Lowe kills, a Strantzali kill and a Titan attack error. After a sideout, a Consani kill, a Lowe kill, a Frager/Lowe combo block and a Titan attack error put the Bruins up 14-8.
At 15-10, the Bruins scored 10 of the last 12 points of the match to win the third 25-12. Buechler was on fire to end the match, chipping in on five of those 10 points on four kills and a combo block with Felix. At 21-12, a Buechler kill, a Strantzali kill, a combo block by Felix and Strantzali and a Titan attack error clinched the 13-point win. Buechler and Lowe each had four kills in the third, while Strantzali added three. The Bruins hit .379 and held the Titans to a -.065 percentage, posting four more blocks.
The Bruins open up Pac-12 play on Tuesday at #10 USC at 8 p.m. The match will be televised live on Pac-12 Networks. Free audio and live stats will also be available at UCLABruins.com.
