Sept. 6, 2008
Box Score
SAN FRANCISCO, California - After defeating Utah State on Friday evening, the Mavericks suffered two losses on Saturday, with the final defeat coming against UC-Santa Barbara, 25-11, 25-13, 25-17, at the USF Asics/Powerade Challenge at War Memorial Gym in San Francisco. The Mavs' victory over Utah State secured them of a third-place finish at the tournament.
The Gauchos (3-2) were locked in throughout the match tallying a .454 hitting percentage to improve their tournament record to 2-1. UT Arlington drops to 3-4 overall on the season. Sophomore Bianca Sauls was named to the All-Tournament team, and host-school San Francisco won the tournament title for the fourth consecutive season with a perfect 3-0 record.
UT Arlington head coach Diane Seymour feels playing against strong competition like San Francisco and UC-Santa Barbara will only help her squad once Southland Conference play begins.
"We came out here and got what we wanted to see, a couple of good teams that had good size and good ability to hit the ball," Seymour said. "We are going to continue to see that competition this coming week with TCU, Duke and Middle Tennessee State. That was part of coming out here. Utah State is also a good team that plays at a high level. Over the course of the next week should prepare us very nicely for conference play."
UC-Santa Barbara proved its strength at the net early with two blocks and six kills to take a 10-4 lead. Freshman outside hitter Amanda Aguilera put down three kills during a 7-3 run by the Gauchos, and sophomore Bianca Sauls chipped in three kills as UC-Santa Barbara led the first set 17-9.
Aguilera led the Mavericks with four kills in the first set, while UC Santa Barbara used only four Maverick errors and an eye-catching .457 hitting percentage (17 kills- 1 error- 35 attempts) to earn the 25-11 first-set victory. Defensively, the Mavericks were led by freshman Alicia Shaffer who recorded seven digs.
After the Gauchos took a 3-1 lead in the second set, a UCSB serving error and two kills from freshman Tara Frantz brought the Mavs within a point (4-5). Another Gauchos serving error and a block assist from freshman Emily Shearin and Sauls cut UC-Santa Barbara's lead to 7-10, but UCSB answered going on a 5-0 run to take a 15-7 lead.
UC-Santa Barbara proved to be too powerful in the second set notching a 25-13 victory. Shaffer posted four digs in the second set to move her match total into double figures for the match.
The Mavericks hung tough with the Gauchos early in the third set with the score tied 6-6. Then each team went on a run as UCSB went on a 5-1 run to take a six point lead (13-7), before Frantz (three kills), Sauls (kill, ace) and junior Teena Sobczak (two aces) brought the Mavs back within two points, 14-16, on a 7-3 run.
The Gauchos bounced back to claim the third set, finishing the match with five kills to defeat the Mavs in a three-set sweep.
Sauls and Frantz posted seven kills each to lead the Mavericks. Shaffer finished with a team-high 14 digs.
UT Arlington will play its home opener on Wednesday, Sept. 10, hosting undefeated TCU (6-0) at Texas Hall in Arlington.
MATCH NOTES:
UT Arlington falls to 3-2 all time against UC-Santa Barbara, all coming on a neutral court ... the Mavs drop to 6-13 against Big West Conference opponents.
TOURNAMENT NOTES:
In UC-Santa Barbara's first match on Saturday, 34-year head coach Kathy Gregory won her 800th career match, all while head coach of the Gauchos... In 1989, Gregory became only the third woman inducted into the Volleyball Hall of Fame... She becomes the sixth head coach in NCAA history to win 800 career matches... other 800 win head coaches are Russ Rose (Penn State), Dave Shoji (Hawai'i), Andy Banachowski (UCLA), Debby Colberg (Sacramento State) and Mike Herbert (Minnesota).
All-Tournament Team:
Carly Babin - USF (MVP)
Alix Gombos - USF
Sarah Mandala - USF
Charlene DeHoog - UCSB
Kasey Kipp - UCSB
Bianca Sauls - UT Arlington
Katie Astle - Utah State
Team Champion: USF (3-0); Runner-up: UCSB (2-1); UT Arlington (1-2); Utah State (0-3).
USF ASICS/POWERADE CHALLENGE RESULTS
Friday, September 5
UT Arlington defeated Utah State, 3-1
San Francisco defeated UC-Santa Barbara, 3-1
Saturday, September 6
San Francisco defeated UT Arlington, 3-0
UC-Santa Barbara defeated Utah State, 3-0
UC-Santa Barbara defeated UT Arlington, 3-0
San Francisco defeated Utah State, 3-0
