SAN FRANCISCO — Santa Clara volleyball continued its stretch of strong performances during the second half of West Coast Conference play on Friday night. The Broncos swept San Francisco 25-11, 25-17, 25-17 in a road match at Sobrato Center.
Santa Clara currently owns the second-longest winning streak in the WCC at four games. The Broncos (13-12, 6-7 WCC) have swept their last seven head-to-head meetings with the Dons (3-23, 0-13).
Kirsten Mead led Santa Clara with a 35-assist, 11-dig double-double. The senior setter recorded her 1,000th assist of the season on a kill by Allison Kantor late in the first set. Kantor also posted a double-double with 10 kills and 10 digs. Michelle Gajdka led all players by notching 11 kills and added nine digs.
Erin Anthony posted 18 assists and 11 digs for San Francisco. Carly Lowry topped the team with five kills and Marjolijn Oskam led all players with five total blocks.
The Broncos seized command of the first set by winning seven straight points and 10 of 11 to take a 16-5 lead. Gajdka and Taylor Odom each came through with two kills during that stretch. The Broncos took five of the last six points to cap the night's most decisive frame.
Mead set Santa Clara to a .385 hitting percentage in the second set, in which five different Broncos posted multiple kills. Kantor led Santa Clara with five kills in the set. She had two straight kills to cap a 4-0 run that put the Broncos ahead 18-14, then had a kill that started a 6-1 spree to end the set.
Jensen Cunningham and Ngozi Nwabuzoh keyed an 11-3 run that gave the Broncos an 18-9 edge in the third set; they each had two kills as Santa Clara pulled away from the Dons. The pair produced two kills as Santa Clara ended the night on a 4-1 span.
NEXT UP
The Broncos host Pepperdine on Thursday, Nov. 9 at 7 p.m. and Loyola Marymount on Saturday, Nov. 11 at 1 p.m. in their final homestand of the season. The match against LMU is also the team's Senior Day.
NOTES
• Santa Clara is 64-13 all-time against San Francisco.
• Mead has three 1,000-plus assist seasons in four seasons with the team.
• The Broncos sided out at 76.1 percent on the night.
• SCU has won four straight matches on the road.
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