UCSB made a hard-fought comeback to tie the fifth set at 13-13, but the Gauchos fell short in the end and lost 15-13 in their Big West opener Friday against Long Beach State at the Thunderdome.
UCSB’s record moves to 5-8 on the season. Long Beach State is now 8-6 overall.
It was the first match in the Big West for Gaucho coach Nicole Lantange Welch.
Katey Thompson had a big night for the Gauchos, as she led with 21 kills. Ali Spindt and Ali Barbeau also reached double-digit kills figures, recording 15 and 12, respectively.
The Gauchos took control of the match early on with a 25-22 first set victory. In the set, UCSB found themselves trailing 10-6, but Thompson threw down her first kill of the night to spark a 4-0 Gaucho run, tying the score 10-10.
Later in the first, UCSB received timely support from its bench, as Jaylen Villanueva made back-to-back kills to break a 16-16 tie. From then on, the Gauchos never gave up their lead. Spindt played a pivotal role in closing the set with the four kills she made to follow Villanueva’s.
The 49ers responded to UCSB’s 25-22 victory by winning the second set by the same score. Both sets were indicative of the competitiveness of the match, but the third game would prove to be even closer.
In the third set, neither team held a lead more than three points over the other. With Long Beach State up by a narrow 20-18 margin, Phoebe Grunt floated a service ace to keep the Gauchos well in contention. Eventually, UCSB tied the match at 23 off a Spindt kill, and it was Grunt who made the tie-breaking block to give UCSB set point. A 49er attacking error then proved to be all the Gauchos needed to top Long Beach State in the third and take the 2-1 overall lead.
The fifth set maintained the same intense level of competition between the two teams, culminating in the tight 15-13 finish. Spindt and Barbeau led the Gauchos in the game with three kills each. Neither team took the match’s final set into their own hands as it was attacking errors from both sides that broke the 11-11 tie and ultimately finished the match.
