ATLANTA — At one of the toughest tournaments in the nation, the Cal Lutheran women's volleyball team opened the East*West Classic with Texas-Dallas and No. 16 Tufts. The Regals were defeated 3-1 by Texas-Dallas and just missed out on an upset as Tufts held on 3-2.
In the six matches so far this season, the Violet and Gold have played three opponents ranked in the top-25 of the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) and two more that are receiving votes.
The Regals have battled, showing they can compete with the top schools in the nation, and also played in the third five-set match already.
UTD 3, CLU 1 – 22-25, 20-25, 26-24, 22-25
Maci Haddad continued to lead the Regals and had 12 kills, hitting with a percentage of .393, and added five blocks. Kira Mortensen was next with nine kills and five blocks and Sophia Muller had eight kills, 12 digs and five blocks.
Tess Holbert continued her impressive stretch and recorded her third double-double in just five games. She recorded 27 assists and 11 digs, and added four kills, three aces and two blocks. Julia Trento recorded the most digs with 17, joining Holbert and Muller in double-digits.
TU 3, CLU 2 – 21-25, 20-25, 25-23, 25-19, 9-15
Going down early 0-2, the Regals fought back to push a decisive five-set, but Tufts responded and took the match.
Haddad recorded 13 kills, Muller had eight and Caitlin Murphy was next with seven. The Regals had more than one setter get action as Holbert had 18 assists, Jalyn Chun recorded nine and Trento had eight.
The Regals recorded 11 aces in all as Muller tallied five and Holbert had four. Trento paced the defense with 17 digs and Muller added 10 more. At the net, Haddad recorded a team-high five blocks.
The Regals continue the East*West Battle on Saturday. The Purple and Gold get Washington (Mo.) with first serve set for 11:30 a.m. PST.
Box Score: UTD 3, CLU 1; TU 3, CLU 2
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