Thursday, November 20
Moraga, CA
6:30 PM
Saint Mary's College of California
10-16,8-7WCC
3
vs
1
Pacific
8-18,2-13WCC
1
2
3
4
F
Pacific
13
11
26
23
1
Saint Mary's (CA)
25
25
24
25
3
Alayna Pearson was one of four Gaels to record at least three aces tonight
VB | Aces A-Plenty: Strong Serving Leads to Four Set Gaels Victory Over Pacific
11/20/2025 10:28:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
MORAGA, Calif. — Less than a week ago, Gaels fans marveled at the fact that Saint Mary's (10-16, 8-7 WCC) rattled off eight aces in a three set win over Gonzaga, averaging 2.67 aces per set. Tonight, the Gaels dazzled from the service line again, tying their season-high 15 aces, and doing so in just four sets, averaging 3.75 aces per set, a new season best. With the tough serving from the Gaels, Pacific (8-18, 2-13) struggled to get into a rhythm offensively throughout the match, ultimately falling in four.
Throughout the first two sets, Saint Mary's did not trail. The Gaels jumped out to a 7-1 lead in set one and never looked back, doubling up on that lead by the end of the set to take it 25-13. Tessa Schouten was unstoppable from the middle with three kill on four swings, while Alayna Pearson totalled eight first set digs and Miley Thunstrom was responsible for two of the Gaels five set one aces.
Momentum continued to roll for the Gaels in set two, as they hit at 0.407, while limiting Pacific to just four kills and a 0.000 hitting clip. This time, Saint Mary's jumped out to a 10-3 lead en route to a 25-11 set two win. Miley Thunstrom led the charge in set two with five kills on seven swings and four digs, while Tessa Schouten logged three blocks, bottling up the Tigers attack.
Sets three and four saw a different Tiger team than the first two set, as they kept things extremely close with the Gaels, but still would ultimately split those two sets to fall in four. Pacific scored the first two points of set three to earn their first lead of any set in the match. The Gaels responded by retaking the lead at 6-4, and extending it all the way out to 16-13. Down three, the Tigers remained steadfast in their resolve, tying things up on eight separate occasions before recapturing the lead at 25-24 to serve for the set. They would indeed pick up point 26, forcing a fourth set by a narrow 26-24 scoreline. Opposite hitters Genevieve Bane and Kaliko Kealoha each went for five kills without an error in the frame, but the rest of the Gaels had just three kills to nine errors in set three.
As tight as set three was, set four was even closer, seeing 14 ties and nine lead changes. Pacific got the first bit of separation, pulling ahead 10-7, but the Gaels would go on a 5-1 run to pull back ahead at 12-11. Neither team would lead by more than two points throughout the remainder of the set, but the Tigers looked like they had a path to forcing set five, moving ahead 20-18 in the latter parts of the set. The Gaels would respond out of a timeout by rattling off three straight points, and would ultimately stave off the surging Tigers, 25-23. Tessa Schouten led the charge for the Gaels in the final set, as although she only had two kills, she had three blocks, helping lead the Gaels to victory.
Genevieve Bane finished as the Gaels kills leader, with 13 kills on 30 swings and four errors, good for a 0.300 clip. It was Bane's seventh time this season hitting 0.300 or better in a match. Miley Thunstrom was the only other Gael to reach double-digit kills, finishing with 10 to go along with 11 digs and a career-high four service aces. Ivona Lazovic led the setters with 23 helpers, while Madi Zorn went for 14 and three aces, matching her career-high. Also finishing with three aces were Tessa Schouten, who also led the Gaels with seven blocks, and Alayna Pearson, who led the back row effort for the Gaels with 21 digs. The Gaels have now matched their win total from last season.
ACES ON ACES ON ACES
Saint Mary's tied their season high with 15 service aces tonight, something they hadn't done since the third match of the season against North Dakota State. Even more impressively, the Gaels reached 15 aces in just four sets, compared to the five it took them to reach that mark against the Bison. Miley Thunstrom led the charge with a career-high four. The freshman has now tallied 10 aces in her last four matches. A trio of Gaels finished behind Thunstrom with three, as Tessa Schouten, Madi Zorn and Alayna Pearson all got in on the multi-ace fun. Rounding out the group were Ivona Lazovic and Abby Castillon, each with one, as all six servers in the Gaels rotation recorded at least one.
NOVEMBER IS FOR THE DEFENDERS
In all six of their matches this month, the Gaels have held opponents to sub 0.200 hitting clips, culminated by tonight's effort to hold Pacific to just an 0.077 hitting percentage. This has been done in large part to both stellar blocking and back row play for the Gaels, areas in which Saint Mary's struggled mightily early on in the season. Leading the charge at the net has been Tessa Schouten, who has tallied 35 blocks in the month, averaging 1.35 per set. On the back row, Alayna Pearson has racked up 94 digs, averaging 3.62 per set, while Miley Thunstrom and Abby Castillon have recorded 67 and 66 respectively. For the month, opponents are hitting just 0.164 against the Gaels.
COACHES CORNER
UP NEXT
The Gaels will welcome in Washington State for the final home match of the year on Saturday, November 22. As it is the final home match of the year, the Gaels will honor their six graduating seniors in a pregame ceremony. First serve is set for 2 PM.
DON'T MISS OUT ON HOME VOLLEYBALL ACTION. TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE HERE.
#GaelsRise
Throughout the first two sets, Saint Mary's did not trail. The Gaels jumped out to a 7-1 lead in set one and never looked back, doubling up on that lead by the end of the set to take it 25-13. Tessa Schouten was unstoppable from the middle with three kill on four swings, while Alayna Pearson totalled eight first set digs and Miley Thunstrom was responsible for two of the Gaels five set one aces.
Momentum continued to roll for the Gaels in set two, as they hit at 0.407, while limiting Pacific to just four kills and a 0.000 hitting clip. This time, Saint Mary's jumped out to a 10-3 lead en route to a 25-11 set two win. Miley Thunstrom led the charge in set two with five kills on seven swings and four digs, while Tessa Schouten logged three blocks, bottling up the Tigers attack.
Sets three and four saw a different Tiger team than the first two set, as they kept things extremely close with the Gaels, but still would ultimately split those two sets to fall in four. Pacific scored the first two points of set three to earn their first lead of any set in the match. The Gaels responded by retaking the lead at 6-4, and extending it all the way out to 16-13. Down three, the Tigers remained steadfast in their resolve, tying things up on eight separate occasions before recapturing the lead at 25-24 to serve for the set. They would indeed pick up point 26, forcing a fourth set by a narrow 26-24 scoreline. Opposite hitters Genevieve Bane and Kaliko Kealoha each went for five kills without an error in the frame, but the rest of the Gaels had just three kills to nine errors in set three.
Kaliko Kealoha with the Kill!#GaelsRise pic.twitter.com/R7ywgH0q3h
— Saint Mary's Volleyball (@SMC_Volleyball) November 21, 2025
As tight as set three was, set four was even closer, seeing 14 ties and nine lead changes. Pacific got the first bit of separation, pulling ahead 10-7, but the Gaels would go on a 5-1 run to pull back ahead at 12-11. Neither team would lead by more than two points throughout the remainder of the set, but the Tigers looked like they had a path to forcing set five, moving ahead 20-18 in the latter parts of the set. The Gaels would respond out of a timeout by rattling off three straight points, and would ultimately stave off the surging Tigers, 25-23. Tessa Schouten led the charge for the Gaels in the final set, as although she only had two kills, she had three blocks, helping lead the Gaels to victory.
Big Blocks from Tessa!#GaelsRise pic.twitter.com/MbNSvOeLdc
— Saint Mary's Volleyball (@SMC_Volleyball) November 21, 2025
A BEAST on both sides of the ball!#GaelsRise pic.twitter.com/ykHZ2Pleev
— Saint Mary's Volleyball (@SMC_Volleyball) November 21, 2025
Genevieve Bane finished as the Gaels kills leader, with 13 kills on 30 swings and four errors, good for a 0.300 clip. It was Bane's seventh time this season hitting 0.300 or better in a match. Miley Thunstrom was the only other Gael to reach double-digit kills, finishing with 10 to go along with 11 digs and a career-high four service aces. Ivona Lazovic led the setters with 23 helpers, while Madi Zorn went for 14 and three aces, matching her career-high. Also finishing with three aces were Tessa Schouten, who also led the Gaels with seven blocks, and Alayna Pearson, who led the back row effort for the Gaels with 21 digs. The Gaels have now matched their win total from last season.
ACES ON ACES ON ACES
Saint Mary's tied their season high with 15 service aces tonight, something they hadn't done since the third match of the season against North Dakota State. Even more impressively, the Gaels reached 15 aces in just four sets, compared to the five it took them to reach that mark against the Bison. Miley Thunstrom led the charge with a career-high four. The freshman has now tallied 10 aces in her last four matches. A trio of Gaels finished behind Thunstrom with three, as Tessa Schouten, Madi Zorn and Alayna Pearson all got in on the multi-ace fun. Rounding out the group were Ivona Lazovic and Abby Castillon, each with one, as all six servers in the Gaels rotation recorded at least one.
The Gaels are up to SIX aces on the night 🤯#GaelsRise pic.twitter.com/6vt398qURg
— Saint Mary's Volleyball (@SMC_Volleyball) November 21, 2025
NOVEMBER IS FOR THE DEFENDERS
In all six of their matches this month, the Gaels have held opponents to sub 0.200 hitting clips, culminated by tonight's effort to hold Pacific to just an 0.077 hitting percentage. This has been done in large part to both stellar blocking and back row play for the Gaels, areas in which Saint Mary's struggled mightily early on in the season. Leading the charge at the net has been Tessa Schouten, who has tallied 35 blocks in the month, averaging 1.35 per set. On the back row, Alayna Pearson has racked up 94 digs, averaging 3.62 per set, while Miley Thunstrom and Abby Castillon have recorded 67 and 66 respectively. For the month, opponents are hitting just 0.164 against the Gaels.
S2 | SMC 18 - PAC 9
— Saint Mary's Volleyball (@SMC_Volleyball) November 21, 2025
The Gael Block Party is alive and well, thanks to Tessa Schouten and Miley Thunstrom 🥳#GaelsRise pic.twitter.com/AcV4IBeNeK
Layne Dent joins the Block Party!#GaelsRise pic.twitter.com/dnnK845xxJ
— Saint Mary's Volleyball (@SMC_Volleyball) November 21, 2025
COACHES CORNER
UP NEXT
The Gaels will welcome in Washington State for the final home match of the year on Saturday, November 22. As it is the final home match of the year, the Gaels will honor their six graduating seniors in a pregame ceremony. First serve is set for 2 PM.
DON'T MISS OUT ON HOME VOLLEYBALL ACTION. TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE HERE.
#GaelsRise
Team Stats
PAC
SMC
Kills
36
47
Errors
26
26
Attempts
130
138
Hitting %
.077
.152
Points
48.0
72.0
Assists
34
42
Aces
4
15
Blocks
8
10
Game Leaders
Kills
13
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
10
Aces
4
Blocks
2
Kills
8
Aces
3
Blocks
7
Kills
6
Aces
1
Blocks
1
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's VolleyballS
/ Women's VolleyballL/DS
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's VolleyballVB | Tyler Hildebrand Postgame Presser vs. Pacific, 11-20-25
Thursday, November 20
VB | Highlights vs. Pacific, 11-20-25
Thursday, November 20
VB | Tyler Hildebrand Presser Post Gonzaga, 11-15-25
Saturday, November 15
VB | Highlights vs. Gonzaga, 11-15-25
Saturday, November 15
