Cal Poly Volleyball picked up its fourth consecutive win in the Big West with a victory over Utah Valley on Oct. 3 at Lockhart Arena. In a straight-set victory (25-14, 25-16, 25-19), the Mustangs improved to 8-6 overall and remain undefeated in the conference at 4-0.
The Mustangs controlled most of the match, only ever trailing in the third and final set. Cal Poly was able to reach double-digit kills in each set, with a minimum of 13 in the first.
The first set began relatively close until the Mustangs reached 10 points (10-6) and pulled away. The second set began, and Cal Poly set a dominating tone, leading 7-1 early, with their largest lead of 10 points before they were able to close out the set. The third set began with the Wolverines attempting to make a comeback, starting 4-0, but Cal Poly was able to tie the game at 6 apiece, beginning a short back-and-forth affair. However, three consecutive kills by the Mustangs flipped the momentum at 13-9. With the game now comfortably under their control, Cal Poly was able to close out the set, 25-19.
The result marked a tale of two stories: Cal Poly improving to four-straight wins, while Utah Valley has now suffered back-to-back losses.
Holding a sizable difference in most statistics, the Mustangs had a hit percentage of .459, while holding the Wolverines to .159. Cal Poly also had 41 team kills, while Utah had 28. Utah Valley recorded double the number of errors compared to Cal Poly, and the Mustangs also produced five blocks and 10 more assists (37 to 27) than their opponent, providing great ball movement and getting multiple players involved.
Cal Poly’s all-around effort was led by four key players, Kendall Beshear, Kayla Murdoch, Charlotte Kelly, and Breklyn Pulling, each recording eight kills and scoring at least nine points.
With plenty of momentum, the Mustangs will continue their conference road trip, heading to Southern California for a back-to-back matchup on Oct. 9 and 10, first facing Cal State Fullerton, then Long Beach State, both games starting at 6 p.m.