RIVERSIDE, Calif. – The Highlanders could not hold off UC Davis in Tuesday's Big West Conference opener, as the Aggies defeated UC Riverside in straight sets at SRC Arena.
 
Anya Green led UCR with a .545 hitting percentage, her 6 kills tied with Ayanna Kimbrough and Amarachi Osuji for most against the Aggies Tuesday night, but after taking the first set to 21-25 on a .143 clip, the team managed 15 more kills against 14 errors in sets 2 and 3, to finish .063 for the match.
 
Tuesday was the 65th meeting between UC Riverside and UC Davis, which takes its winning streak over UCR to 9 matches. The Highlanders continue to lead the all-time series with the Aggies, 34-28-2. Ending their unbeaten start to 2021 at home, UCR (4-7, 0-1 Big West) must quickly transition from their issues against UC Davis (5-7, 1-0 Big West) to focus on incoming Hawai'i (3-5, 0-0 Big West).

The Highlanders have never beaten the Rainbow Warriors, coming closest at home on Sept. 3, 2017, when UCR took a 2-0 lead in sets before falling in five. Ahuna Kaiulani had 21 kills and Nicole Rodriguez had 15 digs in that outing. The last meeting was a 0-3 loss on Nov. 10, 2019, putting the all-time series at 24-0 in favor of Hawai'i. The last outing for the Rainbow Warriors was 1-3 loss to USC as Hawai'i split its Sept. 10-11 Outrigger Volleyball Series with the Trojans.
 
Following Thursday's conference match against Hawai'i, the Highlanders have a week before their next match, when they travel to UC San Diego to continue Big West play Friday, Oct. 1, at 7 p.m., followed by UC Irvine on the road Saturday, Oct. 2, at 7 p.m.