Friday, September 1
Moraga, CA
7:00 pm
Saint Mary's College of California
4-0,0-0WCC
3
vs
1
Southern Utah
2-3,0-0WAC
1
2
3
4
F
Southern Utah
19
19
25
13
1
Saint Mary's (CA)
25
25
20
25
3
Photo by: Saint Mary's Athletics / Tod Fierner
VB | Gaels Celebrate Home Opener With 3-1 Victory Over Southern Utah
9/1/2023 10:01:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
MORAGA, Calif. — For the first time in nearly 300 days, Saint Mary's (4-0) returned to volleyball action in front of the hometown faithful inside University Credit Union Pavilion. The Gaels rewarded the fans who came out to support with a thrilling 3-1 (25-19, 25-19, 20-25, 25-13) victory over the Southern Utah Thunderbirds (2-2). The Gaels remain unbeaten in what's been a stellar start to the 2023 campaign.
BLOCK PARTY IN MORAGA
The Gaels imposed their will at the net this evening, tallying 17.5 total blocks in the four set contest. This marks the sixth most total blocks ever recorded in a four set match in program history, and the most blocks recorded in a single match since 2019. Kjersti Strong led the charge on the front row with nine total blocks, while Hannah Taylor added seven. In total, six different Gaels recorded at least one block.
POKING THE BEAST
Ahead two sets to none, the Gaels seemed to be in control of this contest heading into set number three. Southern Utah, however, responded with a stellar 25-20 set three victory. This clearly seemed to ignite a fire in the hearts of Coach Browning's squad, as they looked to be a team on a mission in set four. Things got started with an 8-0 that included five of Ella Sandt's six service aces. This cushion would seem to be enough to put some teams into cruise control, but the Gaels kept the pedal to the metal, trading single sideouts for long service runs en route to the 25-13 match clinching set four victory. The Thunderbirds made a brief run at things, rattling off a 5-0 run midway through the set to cut the deficit to six, but the Gaels responded with a 5-0 run of their own, this time sparked by a pair of Genevieve Bane aces to eventually seal the deal.
A DECK STACKED WITH ACES
Saint Mary's rattled off 11 service aces in this one, sparked by Ella Sandt's six. On top of their strong play behind the service line, the Gaels serve reception game was stellar as well, as they committed just reception errors throughout the contest.
ERLAND STAYS HOT
Coming off of a weekend in which she hit at a 0.650 clip, middle blocker Kristen Erland showed no signs of cooling off in front of the home crowd tonight. The El Segundo, California native led all players with 15 kills on just 25 swings, hitting at 0.480 attack percentage. The 15 kills tied her career-best mark set last season against LMU (Nov. 5, 2022) and brought her season attack percentage to a solid 0.585.
SANDT DOES IT ALL
Senior setter Ella Sandt was impactful all over the court this evening. In her usual top form at the setter position, Sandt tallied 29 assists, while also tallying six aces at the top of the Gaels service rotation. She also added seven digs, good for fourth most on the team, her first block of the season, and her first block of the season. It seemed poetic, when it was Sandt who came up with a surprise attack and kill to end the match. The senior has proven to be an excellent swiss army knife in her fourth year with the program.
FOUR AND OH?
The Gaels are off to their best start since 2008, when they began their season with six straight victories. That year, Saint Mary's amassed a final record of 20-8 and earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament. It is only the fifth time in program history that the Gaels have won their first four matches.
QUOTABLE
"We are always happy to get the win. We weren't satisfied with our performance for that stretch in the middle of the match there, but we finished strong and are moving on. Portland State is a very good team, so we will need to be on our game tomorrow." - Head Coach Rob Browning
UP NEXT
The Gaels will be back in action at home tomorrow taking on the Portland State Vikings (3-2). First serve is set for 2:00 PM.
DON'T MISS OUT ON HOME VOLLEYBALL ACTION. TICKETS ARE ON SALE HERE.
#GaelsRise
BLOCK PARTY IN MORAGA
The Gaels imposed their will at the net this evening, tallying 17.5 total blocks in the four set contest. This marks the sixth most total blocks ever recorded in a four set match in program history, and the most blocks recorded in a single match since 2019. Kjersti Strong led the charge on the front row with nine total blocks, while Hannah Taylor added seven. In total, six different Gaels recorded at least one block.
POKING THE BEAST
Ahead two sets to none, the Gaels seemed to be in control of this contest heading into set number three. Southern Utah, however, responded with a stellar 25-20 set three victory. This clearly seemed to ignite a fire in the hearts of Coach Browning's squad, as they looked to be a team on a mission in set four. Things got started with an 8-0 that included five of Ella Sandt's six service aces. This cushion would seem to be enough to put some teams into cruise control, but the Gaels kept the pedal to the metal, trading single sideouts for long service runs en route to the 25-13 match clinching set four victory. The Thunderbirds made a brief run at things, rattling off a 5-0 run midway through the set to cut the deficit to six, but the Gaels responded with a 5-0 run of their own, this time sparked by a pair of Genevieve Bane aces to eventually seal the deal.
A DECK STACKED WITH ACES
Saint Mary's rattled off 11 service aces in this one, sparked by Ella Sandt's six. On top of their strong play behind the service line, the Gaels serve reception game was stellar as well, as they committed just reception errors throughout the contest.
ERLAND STAYS HOT
Coming off of a weekend in which she hit at a 0.650 clip, middle blocker Kristen Erland showed no signs of cooling off in front of the home crowd tonight. The El Segundo, California native led all players with 15 kills on just 25 swings, hitting at 0.480 attack percentage. The 15 kills tied her career-best mark set last season against LMU (Nov. 5, 2022) and brought her season attack percentage to a solid 0.585.
SANDT DOES IT ALL
Senior setter Ella Sandt was impactful all over the court this evening. In her usual top form at the setter position, Sandt tallied 29 assists, while also tallying six aces at the top of the Gaels service rotation. She also added seven digs, good for fourth most on the team, her first block of the season, and her first block of the season. It seemed poetic, when it was Sandt who came up with a surprise attack and kill to end the match. The senior has proven to be an excellent swiss army knife in her fourth year with the program.
FOUR AND OH?
The Gaels are off to their best start since 2008, when they began their season with six straight victories. That year, Saint Mary's amassed a final record of 20-8 and earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament. It is only the fifth time in program history that the Gaels have won their first four matches.
QUOTABLE
"We are always happy to get the win. We weren't satisfied with our performance for that stretch in the middle of the match there, but we finished strong and are moving on. Portland State is a very good team, so we will need to be on our game tomorrow." - Head Coach Rob Browning
UP NEXT
The Gaels will be back in action at home tomorrow taking on the Portland State Vikings (3-2). First serve is set for 2:00 PM.
DON'T MISS OUT ON HOME VOLLEYBALL ACTION. TICKETS ARE ON SALE HERE.
#GaelsRise
Team Stats
SUU
SMC
Kills
41
52
Errors
24
26
Attempts
120
138
Hitting %
.142
.188
Points
55.0
80.5
Assists
37
50
Aces
2
11
Blocks
12
17.5
Game Leaders
Kills
15
Aces
0
Blocks
5
Kills
9
Aces
2
Blocks
4
Kills
9
Aces
1
Blocks
9
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
7
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's VolleyballS
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's VolleyballRS
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