Oct. 9, 2004
SAN DIEGO, Calif. - The 12th-ranked Santa Clara University volleyball team fell to San Diego in four games tonight in West Coast Conference action at the Jenny Craig Pavilion. The Broncos see an end to their eight-match win streak as their record moves to 11-3 overall, 2-1 in league play. The Toreros improve to 10-4, 3-0 in the 32-34, 30-23, 30-19, 30-17 victory.
Freshman Annalisa Muratore posted a team-high 12 kills, while junior teammate Cassie Perret added 11. Freshman Caroline Walters led the team defensively with 12 digs.
San Diego had five players reach double figures in kills, and was led by Devon Forester's 17. Kristen Hurst posted a 14-kill, 13-dig effort and Libero Jackie Bernardin served a career-high six aces and had a match-high 17 digs to add to the Torero performance.
Game one gave volleyball fans something to cheer about, as both teams battled through 22 ties and lead changes. Santa Clara reached its first game point on a USD rotation error, but the Toreros held off with a kill and two points later, held its own game point. Santa Clara pulled away with a 34-32 victory on back-to-back San Diego errors. The Broncos hit .395 in the frame.
San Diego built an early 8-5 lead in the second frame, and went on a 9-3 run to push the advantage to 18-11. Sophomore middle blocker's Christie Dawson and Emily Haas supplied USD with a solid presence at the net, with Haas putting down the final kill during a 30-23 San Diego game-two win.
Intermission did not slow the home team down, as San Diego raced out to a 7-3 lead on three kills from Kristen Carlson. USD never trailed and held Santa Clara to a .091 attacking percentage in the 30-19 decision.
As a team, San Diego hit .342 on the night, and closed the event with a game-four 30-17 win. Bernardin served three aces and Haas would again slam down the final point, marking the Torero's fourth straight victory.
Santa Clara will return to the Bay Area for road matches at San Francisco and Saint Mary's on Friday and Saturday, respectively. First serve for both contests are set for 7 p.m.
