Bears Overcome Errors, Sprinkle Two Wins at Hilton Garden Inn Classic
Date Added Sunday, September 12, 2010 | 4:58 pm
Last Updated Sunday, September 12, 2010 | 4:58 pm
Category: Sports > Fall > Volleyball
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Comments (The Cal women's volleyball team has not always been perfect, though the team's 7-0 record may indicate otherwise.
The No. 10 Bears defeated Seton Hall and Fresno State on Saturday en route to winning the Hilton Garden Inn Classic on Saturday at Haas Pavilion.
Cal did it in straight sets as Coach Rich Feller's squad has done in each match this season.
However, the Bears suffered skids in the second set of both matches that prevented Cal from completely obliterating their unranked opponents.
In the morning match against the Seton Hall Pirates, Cal came out with guns blazing. The Bears registered only two hitting errors on 23 attempts, while holding Seton Hall to .103. Cal handily took the first set, 25-14.
Freshman Adrienne Gehan maintained a perfect hitting percentage through two sets, logging six kills on six attempts. Her teammates, however, became much more error-prone in the second set, allowing Seton Hall to narrow the score to 15-14 after trailing Cal by as much as six.
Sophomore Kat Brown and junior Tarah Murrey picked the team up with some ferocious kills, which put the Bears back in the driver's seat. Cal relented only one point before claiming the set, 25-15. The Bears went on to win the third set, 25-16.
The matinee match against Fresno State also saw two very different Cal teams.
The Bears were very sharp in the first set, again committing only one attack error, though Cal was less consistent from the service line.
Redshirt sophomore middle hitter Shannon Hawari drilled all six of her kill attempts to lead Cal to a 25-12 win. Freshman Lauren Loerch, who was frustrated at the net in the first match, added four kills in the first set without an error.
Cal's hitting percentage plummeted from .680 in the first set to .200 in the second. The Bears struggled to get to balls on defense, which led to a more chaotic offense. Despite a 16-17 deficit, Cal was able to emerge victorious behind Murrey's thunderous attacks in the clutch.
While still making simple mistakes, like occasionally missing a pass or having a ball drop just a fingertips' length away, the Bears stayed in control of the third set, taking it 25-18.
Christina Jones covers volleyball. Contact her at [email protected]
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