UC Riverside women’s volleyball lost their Big West Conference home opener to UC Irvine 3-1 on Friday night at the SRC Arena in Riverside, California. Set scores were 25-23, 19-25, 18-25, and 14-25 in favor of UC Irvine.
The Highlanders started the match strong, winning a tightly contested first set 25-23, which featured 11 ties and six lead changes. McKenna Giles led UC Riverside defensively with a career-high 15 digs, demonstrating her skills as the team’s libero and defensive specialist.
After dropping the first set, UC Irvine rallied to take the next three sets and secure the match win. Key contributors for UC Riverside included Zeynep Belgutay, Casi Doll, Madison Pulsipher, Andrea Brewer, and Malia Tanksley. The loss dropped UC Riverside to 4-10 overall and 0-3 in Big West play, while UC Irvine improved to 4-10 overall and 2-1 in the conference.
UC Riverside is scheduled to face UC San Diego on October 3 at 4:00 p.m., with the match to be streamed on ESPN+.
CSB Take
UC Riverside’s competitive start in the Big West home opener shows promise, but the team must find ways to maintain that intensity through all four sets to contend within the conference. McKenna Giles’ career-best 15 digs highlight a strong defensive backbone the Highlanders can rely on moving forward. As UC Riverside continues its league schedule, consistency and execution will be key to improving their standing in the competitive Big West Conference.
Source: Original report
