UC Riverside
4-7,0-0Big West
Southern Utah
1-9,0-0Big Sky
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UC Riverside | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
| Southern Utah | 21 | 16 | 21 | 0 |
Women’s Volleyball Ends Non-Conference Play with Sweep of Southern Utah
9/19/2026 3:09:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
UCR enters conference play after third sweep of the season
CEDAR CITY, Utah - UC Riverside (4-7, 0-0 Big West) wrapped up non-conference play on Sunday afternoon at America First Event Center with a 3-0 win (25-21, 25-16, 25-21) over Southern Utah (1-9, 0-0 Big Sky).
UC Riverside yielded its second fewest kills on the season while forcing the third most errors by a Highlander opponent this season. The Highlanders also held their second opponent of the season and weekend under .100 hitting.
A kill from Casi Doll began a 3-0 run that countered Southern Utah's 4-0 spree off the opening serve. The freshman assisted Andrea Brewer on the Highlanders' third point until SUU retained serve, but Brewer eventually tied things at six. An attacking error gave the visitors their first set one lead at 7-6.
UC Riverside battled neck and neck with Southern Utah until two more SUU errors allowed UCR to enter the media break with a 15-13 lead. The blows kept coming from Brewer, who made it 17-13 with a kill before making it 20-15 with an ace. The Highlanders sided out for the set on Sariah Johnson's second kill of the match.
UCR found itself outpaced in set two after taking a 5-4 lead, but a Madison Pulsipher error-turned-kill via review preceded a Zeynep Belgutay ace that breathed life back into the visitors. Separate scoring runs carried UC Riverside to a 14-11 advantage with aces from Pulsipher and Elena Kasavica proving to be pivotal.
UCR later stretched the margin to 19-13 before ending set two on a 6-2 run.
Pulsipher kicked off set three with back-to-back aces, and UCR stayed a nose ahead of the Thunderbirds for the majority of the set. The Highlanders bookended each end of the media timeout with a point, adding on two more to go ahead 18-14 on a 5-0 spurt.
UC Riverside struggled to push set three across the line, but Malia Tanksley and Evelyn Hendrix teamed up on the block for the 23-21 lead. Pulsipher set up match point with her fourth kill, and an SUU attack error sealed the sweep.
UCR returns to action on Thursday, September 24 at 5:00 pm PT for the Big West opener at Utah Valley on ESPN+.
