The UC Santa Barbara women’s volleyball team (3-6) earned its first sweep of the season in its home opener Friday night, topping visiting Georgetown (2-8) in three sets 25-18, 25-23, 25-23.
Tallulah Froley led all players offensively, tying a season-high with 13 kills on a potent .333 clip. She added a pair of blocks as well.
Michelle Ohwobete and Sophie Reavis each added nine kills, which ties a career-high for the freshman Reavis, who also did so on a .333 clip. Ohwobete added 12 digs and a block.
Macall Peed tied Michelle Ohwobete for the team lead with 12 digs and Mehana Ma’a led the way with 19 assists.
UCSB outhit Georgetown .220 to .120 and topped the visitor in aces, sideout percentage, total digs, and total kills.
The Gauchos outhit the Hoyas .316 to .108 in the opening set and more than doubled them up in kills 17-8. After trading punches through the early points, the two teams found themselves tied at 18 points apiece before UCSB unloaded a 7-0 run to close the first frame. Froley and Reavis paired up for two kills each on the run. The Hoyas never led in the set.
After dropping the first three points of the second set, the home team found its footing and came back to take a five-point lead at 15-10. Georgetown chipped away at the lead to tie it again at 20-20 drawing a timeout from UCSB Head Coach Nicole Lantagne Welch. Out of the timeout it was Tasia Farmer once again Tasia Farmer proving to be an effective closer sending down four kills in the final eight plays to finish the set and put her team in position for their first sweep.
The third set saw 16 ties and eight lead changes as the Hoyas put the pressure on in the must-win set. They hit a match-high .242 but the Gauchos went above the .300 for the second time posting a .308 clip with 17 kills. Neither team took more than a two-point lead until the Gauchos went up 14-11 but the Hoyas bounced back with a 4-0 run to regain the lead. UCSB then led 23-20 but Georgetown refused to quit, scoring back-to-back kills and an ace to tie it once again. A service error ended the run and on a huge sideout attempt for the visitor, Kristina Pepek and Ohwobete teamed up for a huge block to end the match with a bang.
The Gauchos are back in The Thunderdome again with the Hoyas Saturday night at 7 p.m.