Nov. 8, 2003

Final Stats

LOGAN, Utah - In its final road match of the 2003 regular season, the 19th-ranked UC Santa Barbara women's volleyball team swept Utah State 30-24, 30-28, 30-27 Saturday night in the Glen D. Smith Spectrum.

Despite being out-killed and out-dug, the Gauchos improved to 16-7 overall and 12-3 in Big West Conference play, remaining one-match ahead of Cal State Northridge in the league standings. USU, which entered the contest having won six of its previous eight matches, was shutout for the fifth time this season and fell to 15-10 and 7-7.

Freshman Janine Sandell and sophomore Megan Blackshire paced the UCSB attack with 14 and 13 put-aways respectively, while Blackshire was also a force at the net by blocking five Aggie attacks. Santa Barbara senior outside hitter Erica Menzel just missed out on her 15th double-double of the season with nine kills and a game-high 11 digs. The Gauchos hit .242 for the match compared to .200 by their opponents.

Utah State - which slammed home 57 balls compared to 46 by the visitors - were led by Beth Hodge's 16 kills. Mari Ruddick (12 put-aways) and Zuzana Cernianska (11) also reached double-figures for USU, which pushed the Gauchos to five games during last month's meeting in Santa Barbara.

UCSB returns home for its final four matches of the regular season, beginning with a Friday, Nov. 14 showdown with longtime Big West rival Long Beach State in the Thunderdome. First serve is slated for 7:00 p.m.