Cal volleyball fell into a deeper hole last weekend with two Pac-12 losses in Washington. A tall task to begin with, No. 4 Washington State and Washington handed the Bears with ease.
On Friday in Pullman, Washington, Cal faced the WSU, the tougher of the opponents. Although Cal was swept in three sets, the team did put up a good fight, but at the end of the day, it wasn’t able to outplay WSU’s formidable offense, which hit an impressive .417.
Sophomore middle blocker Mikayla Hayden credited the Cougars’ strong performance, after putting up a solid showing of her own.
“The serving and serve-receive game made the ultimate difference,” Hayden said.
This is evident in the Cougars’ combined spotless 4-0 service-ace-error ratio against the Bears, tallying eight total aces and winning 75% of the sideout points. Fifth-year WSU middle blocker Magda Jehlárová proved as impactful as predicted, as she matched her career high with four aces. Paired with junior opposite Katy Ryan, the duo led the team with 10 kills in the match. Senior middle blocker Jasmin Martin put up a wall at the net with four kills and a pair of blocks, while senior setter Argentina Ung posted 34 assists and five kills.
The WSU defense also held the fort down, with fifth-year liberos Karly Basham and Julia Norville combining for another 25 digs. Nonetheless, the Cougars were still challenged by four-time Pac-12 Freshman of the Week and Cal outside hitter Maggie Li, who had a significant offensive performance leading on 14 kills with .300 hitting, fueled by junior setter Annalea Maeder’s 29 assists. Senior libero Tara DeSa kept some defensive dominance on Cal’s side of the court with 13 digs.
Although Cal got off to an early 2-1 lead with two straight kills from junior middle blocker Ellie Hamm, Washington State put together a 4-0 scoring run and .545 hitting that gave it the lead for the rest of the game, eventually taking the first set, 25-10.
The Bears forced WSU into a tougher battle in the second set, giving their best defensive effort of the match to hold the Cougars to just a .286 hitting percentage. Both teams then exchanged scoring runs, but it was Washington State that took the set, 25-20.
In the third set, the Bears put up another good fight as they hit an impressive .429, but the Cougars came in blazing too, hitting just slightly better at .481. Senior outside hitter Sam Taumoepeau and freshman opposite Ashley Li consistently kept the margin close with kills to carve out some big plays, but it was WSU that again swooped in to close out the game, 25-20.
Looking for redemption, Cal volleyball came into Sunday’s game against Washington with great determination — however, the match was once again decided at the service line. While the Bears recorded 14 total errors to four aces, the Huskies ranked among the nation’s top 25 teams in service aces per set and total aces, more than doubling Cal’s ace count with nine aces.
This ultimately created a domino effect in the game, as although the Bears out-hit the Huskies in the first set, .357 to .269, Cal’s six service errors came back to bite in Washington’s 20-25 finish.
As Washington struggled with its defense in the second set, Cal performed much better,out-hitting its hosts again, .375 to .194. With three kills apiece from Li and Taumoepeau, the Bears utilized their early scoring runs to maintain momentum until they hit a 25-20 victory.
However, Washington dominated the third set as it utilized sophomore outside hitter Audra Wilmes and senior libero Grace Zilbert to stabilize its defense with a two-women serve-receive, allowing Washington to hit .769 to Cal’s meager .053. The Huskies then put multiple 6-0 runs that led to an eventual blowout, 25-11.
In the final set, Cal held a disadvantage in momentum, but managed to keep the game close with some 3-0 runs — yet, it was Washington’s offense that pulled through to seal the game at 25-19. Its prowess was mostly powered by junior outside hitter Madi Endlsey’s 18 kills, senior middle blocker May Pertofsky’s big impact at the net with six kills, Wilmes’ 11 kills and freshman outside hitter Kierstyn Barton’s seven kills. Sophomore setter Molly Wilson powered Washington to .294 hitting over Cal’s .217, while Zilbert powered the UW defense with 14 digs and three aces.
Despite some standout performances from Maeder, with 29 assists and 9 digs; Maggie Li, who had 15 kills, 2 assists, 2 aces, a block and 6 digs; and Taumoepeau, who had 12 kills on .321 hitting, the team was overpowered by Washington.
Cal has work to do to catch up to its Pac-12 counterparts. But, if the Bears can attack offensively, there is potential to propel to greater heights.
