SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Santa Clara volleyball swept San Francisco for the second time in as many matches this season 25-19, 25-12, 25-14 Thursday night in the Leavey Center. The Broncos used an early run in all three sets to take command of the West Coast Conference match en route to their sixth straight win at home.
Santa Clara won 10 of the match's first 11 points and took seven straight points to pull in front 9-4 in the second stanza. After the break, the Broncos won seven of nine points to start the third set.
"I'm really proud of the way our girls played tonight," head coach Jon Wallace said. "Their commitment to defense was sensational. Our blocking and deep digging were spectacular."
Sabrina Clayton paced the Broncos (19-6, 10-3 WCC) with six kills as they got out to a 13-7 lead in the third set against the Dons (16-10, 3-10). She tied Anna McCreadie with a match-high 11 kills Thursday night. Clayton has led Santa Clara in kills for three straight matches, and has 50 kills total in that span.
"Sabrina Clayton had a great match and has been playing at an extremely high level these last couple of weeks," Wallace said. "She was stellar and had a great all-around game."
In her 100th career match with Santa Clara, Danielle Rottman served four aces in a seven-point stretch that helped the Broncos get on the front foot in the opening set. San Francisco came within three points of Santa Clara four times in the first frame, and the Broncos closed out the set by winning three consecutive points.
Rottman finished with a career-high six aces and led the Broncos with 14 digs. Santa Clara posted 13 aces as a team, their second-best total in a match this season. Kirsten Mead racked up 31 assists while Lacey Maas and Jensen Cunningham each tallied six total blocks.
The Dons hit .435 in the first set, and were held to negative hitting percentages in the second and third sets. Katarina Pilepic led San Francisco with six kills.
McCreadie had a kill and two block assists during Santa Clara's second-set run. Five different Broncos contributed to blocks in the second set and Santa Clara outblocked San Francisco 13-5 overall.
The Broncos return to the Leavey Center floor against Loyola Marymount Thursday, Nov. 12. They host a Senior Day match against Pepperdine Saturday, Nov. 14.
