MORAGA, Calif. — With the arrival of West Coast Conference play, there will not be too many weeks ahead like what Saint Mary's is set to face. The Gaels will have three conference matches on tap, with the first coming at home against Santa Clara for a rare Tuesday night match. Following Tuesday's contest, SMC will hit the road again as they venture up north to take on Gonzaga and Portland.
 
THE DETAILS
Santa Clara Broncos (4-8, 0-2 WCC) at Saint Mary's Gaels (6-5, 0-2 WCC)
Tuesday, September 28 at 7:00 pm
University Credit Union Pavilion – Moraga, Calif.
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Saint Mary's Gaels at Gonzaga Bulldogs (4-8, 0-1 WCC)
Thursday, September 30 at 6:00 pm
Charlotte Y. Martin Centre – Spokane, Wash.
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Saint Mary's Gaels at Portland Pilots (4-6, 1-0 WCC)
Saturday, October 2 at 12:00 pm
Chiles Center – Portland, Ore.
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LAST TIME OUT
Saint Mary's began WCC play on the road last weekend and got greeted by two of the most difficult teams in the conference. The Gaels dropped matches to both #25 San Diego and #11 BYU over the weekend, but they looked markedly better against the Cougars on Saturday. Saint Mary's hung tight defensively, closed up openings on the floor, and never let a single set out of reach inside the Smith Fieldhouse. One area that wasn't as strong as it had been was their blocking, which registered just seven total blocks across six sets on the weekend. Still, Saint Mary's ranks second in the WCC with 2.5 blocks per set.
 
ABOUT SANTA CLARA
Much like Saint Mary's, the Broncos are are scuffling as they enter conference play. Including getting swept by LMU and Pepperdine, they have lost four of their last five matches heading into Tuesday night's affair. In terms of similar opponents, they lost to both San Jose State and UC Davis in four sets (the Gaels beat UC Davis). They've had a rough go of it from the service line this season, with 123 service errors. They do have a trio of big attackers who will look to play a crucial role: Julia Sangiacomo (164 kills), Michelle Shaffer (161 kills), and Sophia Tulino (144 kills). Shaffer also ranks third on the team with 29 total blocks.
 
ABOUT GONZAGA
The Bulldogs have struggled on the road this season, posting a winless 0-5 record thus far, but are 2-1 at home and 2-2 on neutral courts. Conference play began with a three-set loss to an improved Portland team on Saturday, but the Bulldogs have lost four of their last five matches overall after beginning the year 3-4. Their attack was stymied by Portland's defense, as the Bulldogs nearly equaled as many kills (29) as they did errors (25). They also had 12 service errors and let Portland attack at a 26.5% rate. McKenna Marshall is their best attacker, with a team-leading 140 kills, but just one other player has more than 100 (Kennedy Croft, 110).
 
ABOUT PORTLAND
The Pilots came out on the winning end of their matchup against Gonzaga over the weekend to begin conference play with a perfect 1-0 mark. It was their first match in two weeks after bowing out of a tournament hosted by the Washington Huskies because of non-COVID-19 related issues. Prior to that pause, the Pilots had dropped four-consecutive matches. They have still struggled this season on the attack, with a hitting percentage of just 0.183, but they almost have a 1:1 ratio at the service line. Jayde Harris is their go-to attacker, as she has more than twice as many kills as any other Pilot.
 
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