Oct. 29, 2010

Box Score (HTML) | Box Score (PDF)

CORVALLIS, Ore. - The No. 3-ranked California volleyball team (19-1, 9-1 Pac-10) earned a three-set victory (28-26, 25-22, 25-19) over Oregon State (8-16, 1-9 Pac-10) at Gill Coliseum on Friday, Oct. 29. The Golden Bears were led by sophomore opposite hitter Correy Johnson, who had 10 kills (2e, 20att, .400) to go with four blocks and a service ace. Junior outside hitter Tarah Murrey added 14 kills (7e, 45att, .156) and three blocks of her own as Cal moved one victory closer to a fifth-consecutive 20-win season.

Sophomore middle hitter Kat Brown was efficient on offense as she registered nine kills (1e, 14att) for a .571 hitting percentage. Brown also put in four blocks and a service ace of her own. Freshman outside hitter Adrienne Gehan had seven kills (2e, 13att, .385). The Bears logged a .316 hitting percentage (48k, 12e, 114att) thanks to the accurate setting of senior setter Carli Lloyd, who put up 36 assists to go with six kills (0e, 11att, .545), four blocks and a service ace.

Oregon State was paced by senior outside hitter Jill Sawatzky's 11 kills (6e, 32att, .152) and two service aces. Junior outside hitter Dre Shaw put in eight kills (1e, 13att, .538), as did freshman middle blocker Mona Kressl (8k, 4e, 19att, .211). Three more Beavers had six kills, including sophomore setter Megan McBride (6k, 1e, 8att, .625) who led the team with 36 assists. The Beavers put up a .250 hitting percentage with 46 kills (19e) on 108 swings.

The Bears earned the first points of the opening set, but the Beavers wrestled away that lead to go in front, 10-8. Oregon State later went up by three points, but the Bears battled back to force the seventh tie of the set at 16-all as senior defensive specialist Meagan Schmitt earned a service ace. Cal went up, 20-19, on a triple block of a Sawatzky attack, but the Beavers persisted to take another three-point advantage at 24-21 on a Sawatzky ace. The Bears fought off two set points and drew a 24-all tie as Brown and Gehan got together to block an attack by Kressl. Oregon State took two more leads and the set faced its 13th tie before Brown put down an overplayed dig for a 27-26 lead. Murrey crushed a ball on the next play for her fifth kill of the set and a 28-26 Cal win. The Beavers earned points on 21 kills (7e, 42att) to put up a .333 hitting percentage. The Bears had a .368 attack outing in the first set (17k, 3e, 38att) and logged 5.5 blocks.

Oregon State held a 4-2 lead in the second set, but the Bears earned four straight points to come up with a 6-4 lead. Cal never trailed again, and took a four-point lead at 15-11 as Lloyd slammed an overplayed dig to the ground for a kill. Murrey's kill created a five-point gash at 18-13, but the Beavers fought got within two points at 22-20 on a block of a Murrey attack. A broken play forced OSU to surrender a free ball that the Bears turned into set-point as Lloyd floated the second contact to an empty back corner of the Beaver court. Oregon State got one more point before Johnson terminated play on a slide for a 25-22 win. The Bears put up a .238 hitting percentage in the second set with 17 kills (7e, 42att) while the Beavers got 14 kills (5e, 35att) for a .257 attack rate.

Cal never trailed in the final set and earned a six-point lead at 11-5 as Johnson recorded her service ace. The Beavers closed to within two points at 15-13 on a kill, but sophomore libero Robin Rostratter served five straight points to help the Bears race out to a seven-point lead at 20-13, capped by a cross-court kill by Gehan. The teams traded points through the next rallies before Brown stepped out on a slide play to send a ball down the line for a 24-18 lead. Murrey went off the Beaver block on the final play to give the Bears a 25-19 win and the three-set sweep. Cal posted a .353 hitting percentage in the third set (14k, 2e) on 34 swings and held the Beavers to 11 kills on 31 attacks (7e) for a .129 attack rate.

The Bears head south on the interstate for a 7 p.m. PT date with No. 18 Oregon (16-6, 4-6 Pac-10) on Saturday, Oct. 30. Led by Murrey's 15 kills, Cal took out the Ducks in three sets (25-16, 25-14, 25-16) on Oct. 1, Haas Pavilion. For live statistics and streaming video, please visit www.goducks.com.