The Cal Poly volleyball team won their 18th straight match Friday at Mott Athletics Center, sweeping UC Davis in straight sets.
The first set started with both teams going back and forth before the Mustangs took control with a 7-1 run. Senior middle blocker Savannah Niemen fueled the Mustangs’ run through her strong service, which allowed Cal Poly to take control of the first set.
During the Mustangs’ run, senior setter Taylor Nelson scored a key point for the Mustangs with a quick flick at the net to stop the Aggies from building momentum and increased Cal Poly’s lead to 16-8.
The quick flick from Nelson, who usually sets up her teammates instead of scoring herself, caught UC Davis off guard and landed at the feet of the Aggies players before they could react to it.
The second set was much closer. The Mustangs only had a four-point advantage at 14-10 when UC Davis called their first timeout of the set.
The UC Davis timeout ended up helping the Mustangs as they came out of the timeout looking sharper than they had all night, subsequently going on a 4-1 run. The run helped Cal Poly win the second set 25-16.
“Tonight was just a very good high-level almost start to finish in terms of execution,” head coach Sam Crosson said. “When we’re hitting as well as we are tonight we are a tough team to play against.”
The Mustangs continued to execute well in the third set. UC Davis hung around in the beginning of the set getting within three points of the Mustangs’ advantage in the set, but the Mustangs were able to pull away again.
With the Mustangs up 19-13 in the set, the Aggies hit a ball that barely cleared the net and Nieman emphatically spiked it down to push the lead to seven points.
The Mustangs went on to win the third set 25-16 to complete the sweep against UC Davis for the second time this season.
Cal Poly also clinched the division title in their next match against UC Irvine Saturday at 2 p.m. at Mott Athletics Center.