STOCKTON, Calif. - The University of the Pacific team dropped a five-set decision – 25-19, 22-25, 25-23, 21-25, 17-15 - to Pac 12 member Cal in the championship match of the Pacific Community Classic. The two teams have needed five sets to decide the last three meetings.
Pacific (2-4) was led by
Alexa Edwards, who had 21 kills and a .186 hitting percentage in the loss.
Jenna Heller had her third double double of the young season with 34 assists and 13 digs to go along with three service aces.
Kennedy Kaminsky led the frontline, who had 11 blocks, with a block solo and five block assists, plus
Sedona Sherman also had a hand on five block assists.
Jadyn Tubbs added a team-best 23 digs.
Set 1
Visiting Cal led from start to finish en route to a 25-19 victory. The Bears started the match on a 7-3 run. Pacific clawed back to within one on a pair of occasions before Cal managed to answer the threat. The Bears hit .222 to .059 for the Tigers in the first set as Katie Smoot had a match-high five kills in the set.
Set 2
The second set saw it tied on seven occasions and five lead changes. Pacific opened the set with a 7-3 lead. Cal came back to tie the set at 7, 9, 12, 13 and 14 until a 5-0 run by the host Tigers put UOP ahead for the remainder of the set. Two of the five points came on kills by
Ramonni Cook and two more came via Edwards' kills. Edwards finished the set with four kills, plus Heller added seven assists and six digs for the Tigers. Pacific finished the set with five blocks to one for Cal.
Set 3
The third set was indicative of the tightly contested match that saw the set tied on 17 occasions and seven lead changes. No team had a lead more than two points throughout the set. Smoot led the Bears with seven kills to secure the set. The Tigers'
Darina Kumanova had six kills to lead Pacific.
Set 4
The fourth set saw Pacific lead from start to finish as they began the set with an early 6-3 lead. A hot-hitting Pacific squad hit .333 in the set with six kills from Edwards and five more from Kumanova. The two-setter attack by Pacific saw Heller with seven assists and
Gabby Leo add five in the set.
Set 5
Cal started the set with an early 4-1 lead. Facing a 13-11 deficit, the Tigers tied the set for the first time with kills by Cook and Heller. The two teams managed to trade sideouts and tie the score at 14 and 15, respectively. The Bears secured the win after a UOP service error and a kill by Smoot.
Next Up
The Tigers will travel to the Sacramento State Tournament where they will face Boise State (Fri., Sept. 10 at 10 a.m.), host Sacramento State (Fri., Sept. 10 at 7 p.m.) and CSUN (Sat., Sept. 11 at 11 a.m.)
Follow Us
For the latest news and information on Pacific volleyball, please follow the Tigers on Twitter (@PacificVball), Instagram (@pacificvolleyball) and Facebook (@PacificWomensVolleyball).
