Volleyball Rallies from Two Sets Down, Knocks Off Portland

Volleyball Rallies from Two Sets Down, Knocks Off Portland

SANTA CLARA, Calif.Julia Sangiacomo had 17 kills and Allison Kantor added 14, along with a career-high 22 digs, and the Santa Clara volleyball defense helped stifle Portland in a 20-25, 20-25, 25-19, 25-19, 15-9 come-from-behind win on Saturday.

Michelle Shaffer had one of her all-around strong performances with 22 assists, eight kills and nine digs for the Broncos (14-7, 4-4) who posted 14.5 total team blocks in their second comeback from two sets down this year.

Liz Reich had 15 kills and Kassidy Naone and Shayla Hoeft tallied 14 each for the Pilots (10-9, 2-6) who were held to a .162 attack percentage.

The Broncos, who hit .204 in the match, pulled away in the fifth set, but the first four were closely contested.

In the fourth set, Portland was within 13-12 and then Broncos scored six of the next seven points highlighted by three kills from Sangiacomo. Portland pulled within 21-17, but Santa Clara scored the next three.

The Pilots were also within 13-12 in the third set before Santa Clara made its push to get back in the match. Shaffer started a 4-0 run with a kill and one of her three match aces. A kill from Claire Forrest and a Santa Clara attack error had Portland within 21-18. But the Pilots followed with a service error and Sangiacomo and Alexa Dreyer had back-to-back kills for the Broncos.

The Broncos posted a match-best .421 attack percentage in the final set and led from start to finish. Kantor had three of the team's 10 kills. She keyed a 4-0 run with two kills that pushed the lead to 10-4. The Pilots were never within four the rest of the way.

Taylor Odom had a team-best seven blocks, and Alexa Dreyer had six for the Broncos.

The opening set featured 10 ties and four lead changes. The Broncos led 15-14, but Portland followed with 5-0 run buoyed by two kills from Reich and the Pilots scored the last four points of the set.

In its second match of the season, Santa Clara rallied from two sets down to defeat UT-Martin 23-25,22-25,25-23,25-9,15-9 on Aug. 30.

UP NEXT
The Broncos head back on the road, facing Saint Mary's on Thursday and Pacific on Saturday.

NOTES
• Santa Clara leads the all-time series 55-13.
• It marked Taylor Odom's seventh match this season with seven or more blocks.
Allison Kantor's double-double was the 18th of her career, including fifth this season. She also had a career-high tying six blocks.
• For the 14th time this season, Julia Sangiacomo logged double-digit kills. It marked her fifth outing with 17 or more.

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