SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Strong defense and a balanced offensive attack Thursday carried the Santa Clara University women's volleyball team to a 3-1 (25-21, 23-25, 25-23, 25-20) West Coast Conference, home-stand-opening victory over Seattle at Leavey Center.
Santa Clara (10-14, 6-6 WCC) held Seattle (4-17, 1-10 WCC) to only .183Â hitting as a team, collecting 62 digs and five total blocks on the defensive end. The Broncos also had three players with double-digit kills, led by
Cate Shanahan's 20 kills. She added five digs and three blocks. Shanahan has recorded at least 20 kills in four consecutive matches. Freshman middle blocker
Allison Dzieciuch added a season-high 15 kills on a .458 hitting percentage with two block assists.
Selin Aslayan posted double-digit kills as well with 13, her fourth consecutive match with 13 or more terminations.
Macy Hinshaw tallied 52 assists and 16 digs for her 13th double-double in her last 16 matches. It was the seventh time this season Hinshaw has gone over the 50 assists mark.
Lexi Trapani collected 19 digs and five assists.
The Broncos answered a 14-13 deficit in the first set with four straight points, taking a 17-14 lead on kills from Dzieciuch and Shanahan, a Shanahan/Dzieciuch block and another Dzieciuch kill. Later, Aslayan and Hinshaw recorded back-to-back kills before an Aslayan/
Grace Flanagan block made it 23-18. Flanagan closed the set with a kill as Santa Clara took the opener, 25-21.
Santa Clara flipped another early deficit in the second set, turning a 6-3 score into a 10-6 lead with a 7-0 run.
Tia Kapihe served six straight points during that stretch, including two aces, while Shanahan added three kills. Seattle later moved back in front, and the Broncos rallied from 23-20 to tie the set at 23 before Seattle scored the final two points for a 25-23 set.
In the third set, the Broncos answered after the Redhawks moved ahead, 22-21, using a
Danielle Brown kill and a Seattle attack error to get back in front. Shanahan supplied Santa Clara's final two points, both off assists from Hinshaw, including the set-ending kill in a 25-23 win.
Santa Clara pulled away in the fourth set with a four-point stretch to go up 15-7, getting two Dzieciuch kills and two Seattle attack errors. The Redhawks later cut the margin to 23-20, but Shanahan followed with a kill, and another Seattle attack error finished the Broncos' 25-20 set win and clinched the 3-1 match victory.
Chloee Leslie finished with 12 kills and 11 digs for Seattle. Teagan Melton had 11 kills and four block assists. Hailey McEllrath recorded seven total blocks, three kills and a service ace. Linnaea Moore added five total blocks, including one solo block.
Santa Clara's three-match home stand continues at 1 p.m. Saturday when it hosts Portland. Fans can purchase tickets and find all live coverage links on SantaClaraBroncos.com.
