Oregon State
8-2
Santa Clara
8-4
Volleyball Holds Off Santa Clara In Four Sets
September 14, 2012 | Women's Volleyball
Sept. 14, 2012
FULLERTON, Calif. - Laura Schaudt set a career-high with 14 kills and Arica Nassar had 11, while hitting .556, to pace the Oregon State volleyball team to a four-set win (25-21, 18-25, 25-20, 25-19) over Santa Clara to open the Fullerton Classic Friday at Titan Gymnasium.
The win pushed Oregon State to an 8-2 record this season while Santa Clara dropped to 8-4.
"This was a good win," Oregon State head coach Taras Liskeych said. "Santa Clara really played very well at the beginning of the match. In sets three and four, we really adjusted our blocking well. Their middle attack was very good in sets one and two. We really blocked well in the last two sets."
Schaudt had 14 kills in 33 attempts - and finished with a .303 hitting percentage - to pace the Beavers to their sixth consecutive win, tying for the longest winning streak in Liskevych's eight seasons. Schaudt was backed by Nassar, who had 11 kills in 18 attempts for an impressive .556 hitting percentage, by far the best by an OSU player this season.
Oregon State hit .299 as a team, a season-best that surpasses the team's previous high of .283 against DePaul less than a week ago.
Liskeych alluded to Oregon State's 17.5 blocks as a key in the team's win. Haley Clarke started and recorded 10 blocks - a career-best for the redshirt freshman and a season-high for an OSU player. Nassar also had six blocks as did Ashley Eneliko, who pitched in with four kills as well.
The Beavers held Santa Clara to a .229 clip as the Broncos were led by Megan Anders' 20 kills.
The lead changed hands a total of seven times during the match, including four times in the fourth set. But the Beavers won the match on the strength of three consecutive blocks - all three involved Clarke while two were with Megan McBride, who also had 40 assists in the win.
Clarke ended the set with six blocks while the Beavers recorded an impressive 8.5 as a team.
OSU won the first set, 25-21, by hitting .517 and holding the Broncos to a .314 clip. Camille Saxton led OSU with four kills during the frame.
Anders had seven kills in the second set to pace Santa Clara, which tied the match at one after winning, 25-18. OSU hit just .171 during the set compared to a .410 percentage for the Broncos. None of the Beavers' 17.5 blocks came during the second set.
The Beavers took the lead for good in the third set with a 25-19 win. Schaudt recorded four kills - as she later did in set four - and OSU took a 4-3 lead and led the rest of the set.
Oregon State continues play at the Fullerton Classic on Saturday. The Beavers take on San Diego State at noon followed by a 7:30 p.m. PT bout with host Cal State Fullerton. The match with the Titans marks the Beavers' final of the 2012 regular season against a non-conference opponent.
Visit osubeavers.com for more information on the tournament.
Season Tickets On Sale
Season and single-match tickets for the Beavers' 2012 campaign are now on sale.
Season tickets are $56 for adults and seniors/children (aged 62 or older or ages 3-18) are $40. Adult single-match tickets are $7, while children are $5. Groups of 20 or more can purchase tickets for $2 per.
Fans can purchase tickets in person at the Gill Coliseum ticket office, over the phone by calling 1-800-GOBEAVS or online at beavertickets.com.
For more information on the Oregon State volleyball team, follow the club's official Twitter account at Twitter.com/BeavsVolleyball or by Facebook at Facebook.com/OregonStateVolleyball.
Support Oregon State University Athletics by making your tax deductible donation to the Beaver Athletic Student Fund. For more information follow this link or call 541-737-2370. Former Student-Athletes are invited to join the Varsity O Facebook Page for upcoming Alumni events.
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