UCSB Volleyball: Gregory Gets Her 800th Victory
The Gauchos sweep past Utah State then add a sweep of Texas-Arlington for good measure.
Kathy Gregory, the only head coach the UCSB women’s volleyball program has ever known, recorded her 800th career victory Saturday as the Gauchos swept Utah State, 25-19, 25-18, 25-21, at the USF Asics/Powerade Challenge in San Francisco. UCSB posted its second win of the day over Texas-Arlington in yet another three-set sweep, 25-11, 25-13, 25-17, in the Gauchos’ tournament closer.
Saturday afternoon’s pair of wins improves the Gauchos’ 2008 record to 3-2 while Utah State falls to 0-6 on the season and UT Arlington now stands at 3-4.
Outside hitter Charlene DeHoog led the Gauchos against Utah State with 10 kills in the win and hit .261 (4e, 23 attempts). Freshman Lily Lopez pitched in her best performance of her young collegiate career as she tallied seven kills on 10 attempts with just one error (.600). The middle blocker also notched two service aces and a pair of blocks.
Three additional Gauchos each chipped in six kills during the match: sophomore Kasey Kipp, senior Lauren McLaughlin (who also added two aces), and junior Rebecca Saraceno. Libero Leigh Stephenson, a senior from Nipomo High, collected 11 digs and sophomore setter Dana Vargas dished out 28 assists.
In the second match of the day, DeHoog was once again stellar, tallying 14 kills and a .423 clip (3e, 26 att). She also pitched in an ace and a block. Kipp’s play was also excellent as the middle blocker hit .769 on the match; recording 10 kills on 13 attempts with no errors.
McLaughlin was also error-less as she landed 10 kills on her 23 attempts for a .435 clip. Saraceno rounded out the double-digit kill performances as she notched 10 with a .409 clip (1e, 22 att). Vargas dished out 39 assists and Stephenson led the pack with 10 digs.
For UT Arlington, two players, Bianca Sauls and Tara Frantz, led the attack with seven kills apiece. Alicia Shaffer had a match-high 14 digs and Raegan Daniel tallied 20 assists.
The Gauchos recorded a season-best .454 clip in the match and committed just six errors. They excelled in the third set, landing a match-high 19 kills on 29 attempts with just one error for a .621 hitting percentage. UCSB relinquished the lead just once during the three-set affair.
UCSB will return to the Bay Area next weekend when they compete in the Stanford Invitational. The Gauchos will take on Santa Clara in the opening round of the tournament Thursday. UCSB will also face No. 3 Stanford and New Mexico State during the three-day tourney.
Lisa Skvarla is UCSB‘s assistant media relations director.