Nov. 29, 2003
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The 22nd-ranked UC Santa Barbara women's volleyball team concluded the 2003 regular season Saturday night with a convincing 30-21, 30-25, 30-24 sweep of No. 21 Arizona in the Thunderdome.
It was the Gauchos' second victory this year over UA, giving them a 19-8 overall record heading into next week's NCAA Tournament. Meanwhile the Wildcats had their five-match winning streak halted and conclude their regular season at 17-14.
For the second consecutive contest, UCSB enjoyed an errorless game one, connecting on 15 of 32 swings without a miscue for a .469 clip. The visitors' last lead came at 9-8, after which Santa Barbara won seven of the next eight points to build a comfortable advantage. The game ended one of Arizona's 11 hitting errors in the frame.
The home team then needed to rally for victory in the second game. After the Wildcats lead by as many as five early on, UCSB finally caught them at 19-19. The two squads then traded points until a UA miscue sent Gaucho sophomore middle blocker back to serve with her team trailing 25-24. Santa Barbara won six straight points on her serve - including an ace and a pair of kills by senior Erica Menzel - to close things out and take a 2-0 lead into the locker rooms.
UCSB maintained its momentum to start the third frame, opening up a commanding 17-7 lead following a put-away from senior Francina Edmonds, who like Menzel was playing her final home match in the Thunderdome. Arizona battled back to within 24-19, and later 27-23 following a service error, but would get no closer as one of Blackshire's team-high 12 kills clinched Santa Barbara its 10th three-game sweep of the season.
Blackshire committed zero errors on her 15 attempts and hit a sparkling .800, equaling the 10th-best single-match mark in Gaucho history. With 10 kills and an equal number of digs, Menzel recorded her 17th double-double on the year. Freshman outside hitter Janine Sandell matched Menzel's kill total, while junior libero Kristin Nelson also scooped 10 balls for her 24th double-digit effort in 2003. UCSB's .382 team hitting percentage was its second-best effort of the season.
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On the contrary, UA conneted at just a .190 clip, and blocked just two attempts compared to the Gauchos' 9.5 stuffs. Sophomore outside hitter Kim Glass led all players with 17 kills, while Jennifer Abernathy slammed home 12 balls.
The Big West Conference Champion Gauchos will learn their NCAA Tournament fate on Sunday, Nov. 30 when the 64-team field is unveiled at 5:00 p.m. on ESPNews.
