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Friday, March 29, 2024

Aggies go undefeated at Doubletree Invitational in Texas

Women’s volleyball coach Jamie Holmes is all about beating the teams they should and playing the tough teams strong.

At the Doubletree Invitational this weekend in Dallas, the Aggies did just that – and then some.

UC Davis topped host and previously undefeated Southern Methodist University en route to going undefeated at the event.

“It was super exciting to do this well at the tournament,” Holmes said. “We improved a lot offensively. We played well all around.”

Junior Betsy Sedlak earned tournmanet MVP while senior Kayla Carney earned top libero for the event.

Friday – UC Davis 3, Texas State 2

After three sets against Texas St., the Aggies were down 2-1.

UC Davis stormed back in the final three sets to take the match 22-25, 25-16, 13-25, 25-23 and 15-10.

Sedlak produced 11 kills in the Friday matinee to lead the Aggies.

Friday – UC Davis 3, Texas Tech 0

UC Davis showed no afternoon sluggishness in its straight sweep of the Red Raiders 25-12, 25-18 and 25-20 in the afternoon set of the invitational.

The Aggies never trailed in the match against Texas Tech. UC Davis hit a remarkable .444 in the opening set of the match en route to the easy victory.

Sedlak and Allison Whitson each had double-digit kills in the match, with Sedlak leading all players with 11. Sedlak hit .500 for the match with Junior Katie Denny hitting .462.

“We hit extremely well in this game,” Holmes said.

Saturday – UC Davis 3, SMU 1 In order for the Aggies to garner an at-large birth for the post-season, they would need to beat some higher ranked opponents.

That’s exactly what the Aggies did in their win over SMU in the finale of the weekend tournament.

“A goal for this season was to play teams with higher RPI’s so we can compete against better teams,” Holmes said. “SMU had a higher RPI so this win can really help us for the post-season.”

Freshman Morgan Borch had a breakout game against the Mustangs, leading the Aggies with 17 kills. Whitson added 16 kills in the victory.

UC Davis and SMU traded the first two sets before the Aggies topped the Mustangs in the final two sets to take the victory and give SMU its first loss of the season.

“We had a total team effort in this one,” Holmes said. “We had three different lineups an we had the best bench in the entire gym. Its always good to get some wins under our belt.”

UC Davis travels to Berkeley, Calif. to take part in the Hiltop Garden Inn Classic next weekend. The Aggies open up against newfound rival California Sept. 10.

JASON ALPERT can be reached at sports@theaggie.org.

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