Saturday, October 18
Spokane, WA
12:00 PM
Saint Mary's College of California
5-13,3-4WCC
3
at
1
Gonzaga
10-8,3-4WCC
1
2
3
4
F
Saint Mary's (CA)
20
25
25
25
3
Gonzaga
25
19
20
18
1
Mya Allen: 24 Kills (ties career-high), 3 Aces (ties career-high), 9 Digs
Photo by: Saint Mary's Athletics / Tod Fierner
VB | Allen, Schouten Lead Gaels to Third Straight Win, Defeat Gonzaga in Four
10/18/2025 6:37:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
SPOKANE, Wash. — The Saint Mary's Gaels (5-13, 3-4 WCC) keep on rolling in WCC play! After a 2-13 start against a brutal non-conference and early conference schedule, the Gaels have rattled off three straight wins, including two on the road. One of those road came today as the Gaels downed the Gonzaga Bulldogs (10-8, 3-4 WCC), ending their three game home winning streak to the tune of a 3-1 win. The Gaels now vault into seventh place in the WCC, and are just one game out of the top five in the conference through four weeks of action.
The Gaels came out of the gates a bit sluggish, falling into an early 18-10 hole. Saint Mary's would eventually find their stride, outscoring the Bulldogs 10-7 down the stretch, but ran out of time after spotting Gonzaga an eight point lead, eventually falling 25-20. That said, the Gaels started to pick up momentum as the set wore on, something that they would not relinquish over the final three frames. Genevieve Bane got the offense going late in the set, with four kills on eight swings and no errors.
The two squads traded sideouts over the four points of set two, but the Gaels would then go on 5-0 run, featuring a pair of huge Mya Allen kills, giving them the separation they needed to cruise to a 25-19 set two win. Set two was the start of the Mya Allen show, as the freshman went for seven kills on 10 swings and no errors, after being limited to just three kills in set one.
Set three saw Gonzaga throw first blow, going ahead 7-2, but the Gaels refused to let it be a decisive blow, responding with a 6-0 run, again led by the high flying exploits of Mya Allen to move ahead 8-7. The Gaels opened that 8-7 lead up to 15-12, and kept the Bulldogs at arms length throughout the set. A pair of Gonzaga points late made it 22-20 before Gracie Vohs and Abby Castillon closed things out with a combined 3-0 run to push Saint Mary's ahead 2-1. Mya Allen added five more kills in the set, but it was the outstanding Gaels defense that won them the third set, headlined by seven digs from Madi Zorn and five blocks from Tessa Schouten. That defense helped the Gaels hold Gonzaga to a -0.057 hitting clip for the frame.
Playing with their backs against the wall, Gonzaga did everything they could to hold the Gaels off in the fourth set, a set that featured eight ties and seven lead changes, but when the dust all settled, the Gaels went onto erase an early 12-8 deficit by outscoring the Bulldogs 17-6 down the stretch and take the decisive fourth set 25-18. As if Mya Allen hadn't been impressive enough in the first three sets, she added nine more kills on just 14 swings in the fourth, while Tessa Schouten added four more blocks, making her way to double figures in rejection for the first time in her career.
Offensively, the Gaels turned to their freshman phenom and defending WCC Freshman of the Week Mya Allen, letting her swing 43 times. In those 43 swings, she matched her career-high with 24 kills, finishing her afternoon with a 0.372 hitting percentage. Allen also led the Gaels with three aces, another matched career mark, and finished one dig shy of a double-double, with nine. Ivona Lazovic led the team with 17 assists, but fellow setter Madi Zorn might've stolen the show with 12 assists and career-high 15 digs for her third assist-dig double-double this season, and her second in the last three matches. Also with an assist-dig double-double was libero Alayna Pearson, who finished with 11 assists and 13 digs, third and second on the team respectively. The real story defensively, however, was the play at the net once again, as the Gaels went for a team-high 15 blocks, with 11 of those (three solo, eight assists) belonging to Tessa Schouten, and six more (all assists) coming off the hands of Genevieve Bane. The 15 blocks were the most by a Gaels squad since their home matchup with Gonzaga in 2023, when they had 16.
PROVING THE VOTERS RIGHT
Mya Allen was named last week's WCC Freshman of the Week, and made sure that the conference voters were justified in that selection, with a 24 kill, three ace, nine dig performance to will the Gaels to the four set victory today. The 24 kills match both Allen's career-high, and the highest total from any Gael this season. While 24 kills in a five set match earlier this season at Cal Poly was impressive, today, Allen had her 24 kills in four sets, tied for the fifth most kills in a four set match in program history. Allen also matched her career-high with three aces, including an ace to end the match in the fourth set.
A BLOCKING BARRAGE
The recent blocking success from Saint Mary's hit new heights today, as after going for 12 blocks in back-to-back five setters coming into this week, the Gaels recorded 15 blocks in four sets today. No one had a bigger hand in this effort than Tessa Schouten, who recorded three solo blocks and eight block assists for a new career-high of 11 rejections in a single match. The last time the Gaels recorded 15 blocks in a match was against Gonzaga on Oct. 12, 2023, when they had 16 in four sets. The last time the Gaels had a single player reach double-digit blocks was on Oct. 14, 2023, when Kjersti Strong had 10 in a three set win over Portland.
UP NEXT
The Gaels will return home to host new WCC member Seattle U on Thursday, October 23. First serve is set for 6:30 PM.
DON'T MISS OUT ON HOME VOLLEYBALL ACTION. TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE HERE.
#GaelsRise
The Gaels came out of the gates a bit sluggish, falling into an early 18-10 hole. Saint Mary's would eventually find their stride, outscoring the Bulldogs 10-7 down the stretch, but ran out of time after spotting Gonzaga an eight point lead, eventually falling 25-20. That said, the Gaels started to pick up momentum as the set wore on, something that they would not relinquish over the final three frames. Genevieve Bane got the offense going late in the set, with four kills on eight swings and no errors.
The two squads traded sideouts over the four points of set two, but the Gaels would then go on 5-0 run, featuring a pair of huge Mya Allen kills, giving them the separation they needed to cruise to a 25-19 set two win. Set two was the start of the Mya Allen show, as the freshman went for seven kills on 10 swings and no errors, after being limited to just three kills in set one.
S2 | SMC 6 - GON 2
— Saint Mary's Volleyball (@SMC_Volleyball) October 18, 2025
Gaels on a run early in set two! Mya Allen already with three kills in the second, matching her total from the first!#GaelsRise pic.twitter.com/tFTUYSzQYW
Set three saw Gonzaga throw first blow, going ahead 7-2, but the Gaels refused to let it be a decisive blow, responding with a 6-0 run, again led by the high flying exploits of Mya Allen to move ahead 8-7. The Gaels opened that 8-7 lead up to 15-12, and kept the Bulldogs at arms length throughout the set. A pair of Gonzaga points late made it 22-20 before Gracie Vohs and Abby Castillon closed things out with a combined 3-0 run to push Saint Mary's ahead 2-1. Mya Allen added five more kills in the set, but it was the outstanding Gaels defense that won them the third set, headlined by seven digs from Madi Zorn and five blocks from Tessa Schouten. That defense helped the Gaels hold Gonzaga to a -0.057 hitting clip for the frame.
S3 | SMC 21 - GON 16
— Saint Mary's Gaels (@smcgaels) October 18, 2025
Kill number 15 for Mya Allen as she cleans up the rally with a big swing!#GaelsRise pic.twitter.com/m0CSJTG3uJ
Playing with their backs against the wall, Gonzaga did everything they could to hold the Gaels off in the fourth set, a set that featured eight ties and seven lead changes, but when the dust all settled, the Gaels went onto erase an early 12-8 deficit by outscoring the Bulldogs 17-6 down the stretch and take the decisive fourth set 25-18. As if Mya Allen hadn't been impressive enough in the first three sets, she added nine more kills on just 14 swings in the fourth, while Tessa Schouten added four more blocks, making her way to double figures in rejection for the first time in her career.
S4 | SMC 7 - GON 6
— Saint Mary's Volleyball (@SMC_Volleyball) October 18, 2025
Pearson rises up for the dig, Allen rises up for the kill!#GaelsRise pic.twitter.com/8UcwIbOU5L
S4 | SMC 11 - GON 12
— Saint Mary's Volleyball (@SMC_Volleyball) October 18, 2025
Mya Allen can DO IT ALL! Gaels within one in set four!#GaelsRise pic.twitter.com/nELCXnBT8O
S4 | SMC 17 - GON 15
— Saint Mary's Volleyball (@SMC_Volleyball) October 18, 2025
Mya Allen with her 20th kill, and Tessa Schouten with 10th block, forcing a Gonzaga timeout in set four!#GaelsRise pic.twitter.com/AYJqg6mkbC
Offensively, the Gaels turned to their freshman phenom and defending WCC Freshman of the Week Mya Allen, letting her swing 43 times. In those 43 swings, she matched her career-high with 24 kills, finishing her afternoon with a 0.372 hitting percentage. Allen also led the Gaels with three aces, another matched career mark, and finished one dig shy of a double-double, with nine. Ivona Lazovic led the team with 17 assists, but fellow setter Madi Zorn might've stolen the show with 12 assists and career-high 15 digs for her third assist-dig double-double this season, and her second in the last three matches. Also with an assist-dig double-double was libero Alayna Pearson, who finished with 11 assists and 13 digs, third and second on the team respectively. The real story defensively, however, was the play at the net once again, as the Gaels went for a team-high 15 blocks, with 11 of those (three solo, eight assists) belonging to Tessa Schouten, and six more (all assists) coming off the hands of Genevieve Bane. The 15 blocks were the most by a Gaels squad since their home matchup with Gonzaga in 2023, when they had 16.
PROVING THE VOTERS RIGHT
Mya Allen was named last week's WCC Freshman of the Week, and made sure that the conference voters were justified in that selection, with a 24 kill, three ace, nine dig performance to will the Gaels to the four set victory today. The 24 kills match both Allen's career-high, and the highest total from any Gael this season. While 24 kills in a five set match earlier this season at Cal Poly was impressive, today, Allen had her 24 kills in four sets, tied for the fifth most kills in a four set match in program history. Allen also matched her career-high with three aces, including an ace to end the match in the fourth set.
A BLOCKING BARRAGE
The recent blocking success from Saint Mary's hit new heights today, as after going for 12 blocks in back-to-back five setters coming into this week, the Gaels recorded 15 blocks in four sets today. No one had a bigger hand in this effort than Tessa Schouten, who recorded three solo blocks and eight block assists for a new career-high of 11 rejections in a single match. The last time the Gaels recorded 15 blocks in a match was against Gonzaga on Oct. 12, 2023, when they had 16 in four sets. The last time the Gaels had a single player reach double-digit blocks was on Oct. 14, 2023, when Kjersti Strong had 10 in a three set win over Portland.
UP NEXT
The Gaels will return home to host new WCC member Seattle U on Thursday, October 23. First serve is set for 6:30 PM.
DON'T MISS OUT ON HOME VOLLEYBALL ACTION. TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE HERE.
#GaelsRise
Team Stats
SMC
Gonz
Kills
54
44
Errors
23
28
Attempts
140
136
Hitting %
.221
.118
Points
74.0
57.0
Assists
45
40
Aces
5
5
Blocks
15
8
Game Leaders
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
6
Aces
1
Blocks
3
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's VolleyballS
/ Women's VolleyballL/DS
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's VolleyballOH
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