Moraga, CA—The UC Riverside Volleyball Team came back after dropping the opening set to claim a 3-1 victory over Middle Tennessee in their final game of the Saint Mary's Tournament. (19-25, 25-17, 25-18, 25-21)
Chelsea Doyle had her first double-double of the season with 23 assists and 13 digs to lead four Highlanders with double-digit digs Saturday.
In the opening frame, UCR found itself down 21-11 and it appeared as if the Blue Raiders would cruise to a comfortable first set victory, but the Highlanders ran off eight straight points to tighten the score 21-19. Middle Tennessee then responded with four in a row to close out the first set 25-19.
The second set saw the Highlanders jump out to a 5-1 lead and maintain it throughout the set at 21-17. UCR then closed out the set with a four-point run of their own to win the second 25-17 and even the match 1-1.
After the intermission, the third set was played within a one point margin and tied at 8 apiece, when the Highlanders won 11 of 15 points to seize control of the set, 19-12. UCR's momentum carried them to a 24-16 advantage, after Middle Tennessee staved off two sets points before the blue and gold prevailed 25-18.
The Highlanders led 13-10 midway through the fourth set, when the Blue Raiders tallied three straight to even the score at 13 all. A Cristina Maietta kill and Kristie Alejo ace coupled with a pair of attack errors helped UC Riverside establish a four-point lead 17-13. As the match advanced, UCR led 23-20 and got the final two points on kills by freshman Yuliya Ushakova for a 25-21 fourth set and 3-1 match victory.
"I'm very proud of how we competed as a team. We are learning how to be a good team and what it takes to respond to adversity. Every player on the court and on the bench contributed to this win.", said Head Coach Michelle Patton-Coleman.
UCR had a season-high 10 service aces as a team in the win. Freshman Frances Camandang had 15 digs, Maddie Hubbell 13 digs to go with three aces, while Maietta added 11 digs and eight kills to round out the four Highlanders with double-digit digs along with Doyle (13). Ushakova had six kills, a solo block and assisted on six other blocks, and Natalie Rojes logged eight kills in four sets played.
The Highlanders will hit the road again next week, when they travel to Logan, UT to play in the Utah State hosted Gossner Foods Tournament September 8-9.
