SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Santa Clara volleyball recorded its 20th win of the season Thursday night by sweeping Loyola Marymount 30-28, 25-22, 25-15 in the Leavey Center. The Broncos also picked up their 10th home win in the West Coast Conference victory.
Santa Clara has hit the 20-win mark for the third time in the last four seasons and ninth time in Jon Wallace's 17 seasons as head coach. The Broncos have reached the NCAA Tournament in each of the other eight seasons with 20 or more wins.
"Tonight was a big WCC win," Wallace said. "We had a couple of extra days to prepare and our girls responded extremely well to the information. They played super loose and aggressive. I couldn't be more proud of how they're playing right now. Their commitment level is off the charts."
Sabrina Clayton topped the Broncos (20-6, 11-3 WCC) with 18 kills, and has led Santa Clara in that category for four straight matches. She posted 10 kills in a close opening stanza that featured five set points for the Broncos and two for the Lions (19-8, 10-5 WCC).
"Sabrina Clayton had another really exciting game for us," Wallace said. "Sabrina and Dani Rottman controlled the game for us in so many ways — Dani with her defense and Sabrina with her attacking. I'm proud of those girls. They're playing at a high level."
Kirsten Mead finished off the first set with an ace to give Santa Clara the early advantage. Mead set the Broncos to a .300 hitting percentage in the second set and a .314 hitting percentage in the third set; she finished the match with 41 assists.
LMU jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the second set, and won its first three points on kills by Rachelle Suaava, who led the Lions with 15 kills Thursday night. Santa Clara took its first lead of the set at 14-13 on Nikki Hess kill.
Hess tallied two more kills, including the second-set clincher, to help the Broncos take a 2-0 lead heading into the break. She totaled 12 kills and nine digs in the victory. Danielle Rottman led Santa Clara with 15 digs.
The Broncos used an 11-1 run to distance themselves from the Lions at 16-7 in the final set. Lacey Maas had two kills and two blocks during the 12-point stretch, and later in the set, she clinched the match with a kill. Maas tied Suaava with a match-high six blocks.
Santa Clara hosts Pepperdine (17-11, 8-7 WCC) Saturday at 1 p.m. for Senior Day. The Waves defeated San Francisco 3-1 Thursday night. The Broncos will honor seniors GiGi Cresto, Maas and Rottman before the match.
