SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Saint Mary's (8-9, 2-3) finished off their stellar road weekend in the Bay winning their final six consecutive sets, including a sweep of Santa Clara (9-8, 1-4) at the Leavey Center today. The Gaels trailed in each set, but kept level heads throughout the match, picking up their first sweep victory since their opener against Manhattan.

DEJA VU
Just like Thursday, the Gaels had a rocky start to the first set, committing six attacking errors, bringing the score to 22-22. From that point, a switch flipped in the Gaels attackers, as they landed attack after attack in the court of play, committing just six more attacking errors throughout the remainder of the contest. Saint Mary's finished the match with a 0.273 hitting percentage, as they have now hit 0.250 or better in six contests. In those contests, the Gaels are a perfect 6-0. In set one against Santa Clara and against San Francisco, the Gaels hit at 0.182. In the other five sets this week, the Gaels hit 0.344. Today's hitting stars were opposites Hannah Taylor and Clarissa Klein, as Taylor went for nine kills on 18 swings and no errors, while Klein went for seven kills on 10 swings with just one error.

KJERSTI "THE BRICK WALL" STRONG
Saint Mary's tallied eight blocks in today's match, out blocking the Broncos by two. The blocking total was right on pace with the Gaels 2.7 block per set average this season, however, it was Kjersti Strong who single handedly led the blocking front today. Strong was involved in all eight of Saint Mary's blocks, coming up with one block solo and seven block assists. Kjersti has now tallied at least five blocks in 10 Gaels contests this season after tallying only three a season ago. 

LIMITING THE SERVICE RUNS
The Gaels posted a strong 62% sideout percentage in today's match, not allowing the Broncos to enjoy any long service runs. No matter what combination of Gaels were on the court, everyone seemed to be active and ready to receive serves against one of the better serving teams in the WCC. 

BAY AREA SWEEP
Saint Mary's picked up their first WCC 2-0 weekend since last year, when they downed both Portland and Gonzaga at home and on the road. It is the first time that they've defeated both of their fellow Bay Area WCC schools on the road since 2021. 

QUOTABLE
"It was an interesting match. We never found a rhythm at all, but the team hung in there and did what they needed to do to stay in control. A WCC road win against a good team like that is always huge. I am very proud of the team for sticking together and, even though it wasn't our best match, they stayed really steady throughout." -- Head Coach Rob Browning

UP NEXT
The Gaels will return home for a Thursday night matchup with Gonzaga. First serve is set for 7 PM on October 12 in Moraga. 

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