No. 5 Louisville Sweeps Cal in ACC Opener

Friday, September 27

LOUISVILLE, KY

7:00 p.m.

University of Louisville

9-2,1-0ACC

California

8-5,0-1ACC

California

Louisville

September 27, 2024 | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

By: Nathan Larson

Dani Busboom Kelly Press Conference Here

LOUISVILLE, Ky – Anna DeBeer and Sofia Maldonado-Diaz each recorded eight kills, hitting .238 and .353 respectively, to lead the No. 5-ranked Louisville Cardinals to a sweep of the California Golden Bears in the Atlantic Coast Conference opener Friday night at L&N Federal Credit Union Arena.

Louisville, now 9-2 and 1-0 in ACC Action, won the match in straight sets, 25-13, 25-15, 25-21, while hitting .172 for the match. The Cards recorded 32 kills, and holding the Bears to -.029 and 23 kills. DeBeer and Maldonado-Diaz also recorded three blocks had three service aces, with libero Elena Scott leading the team in aces with four. Scott also recorded a match-high 26 digs, while Nayelis Cabello and Elle Glock split time and assists, both recording 13. Leading in blocks for the Cardinals was Cara Cresse with seven, who also recorded six kills of her own. Sophomore Hannah Sherman, who earned a starting spot today, put up six blocks of her own, to go along with two kills.

California falls to 8-5 on the season, with sophomore Maggie Li leading the Bears with eight kills and six digs, and junior Mikayla Hayden added five kills and block. Libero Gianna Bartalo recorded three aces, five assists, and had 11 digs.

Louisville will be back at the KFC Yum! Center on Sunday September 29^th, to take on the 8-1 and No. 2-ranked Stanford Cardinal at 3pm EST.

Set 1: 25-13 Louisville
Louisville opened set one with a 5-2 lead sparked by an ace by freshman setter Nayelis Cabello. The Cardinals maintained their momentum to jump out to a 13-7 lead, which was highlighted by back-to-back aces from Sofia Maldonado-Diaz, causing the Golden Bears to call their first timeout. Out of the timeout, the Cards went on a 4-0 run, which led the Bears to burn their final timeout down 17-9 in favor of Louisville. The Cards ran away with the first set, ending on a 6-0 run, when Maldonado-Diaz scored the set point by recording her third kill of the set to go along with her two aces, giving the Cards the set win, 25-13. Louisville hit .233 as a team, to go along with five aces, while holding Cal to only .032. Cara Cresse also added three kills along with four blocks.

Set 2: 25-15 Louisville
California opened the second set with a 7-4 lead coming off of a 3-0 run on an ace by junior Peyton DeJardin. Louisville tied it back up at 11 while on a 3-0 run of their own. The Cards got hot going on a 6-0 run to lead 19-13, which was helped by Reese Robins' third kill of the set. After Maldonado-Diaz's fifth kill of the match, and second of the set, the Cards jumped out to a 22-15 lead, ultimately taking the set 25-15 on a kill from Anna DeBeer. Louisville was held to hitting .161 this set but also held Cal to -.128. Robins led the way for Louisville in the set with three kills, while Maldonado-Diaz and Luper added two kills of their own.

Set 3: 25-21 Louisville
In the pivotal third set, California raced out to another 7-4 lead while on a 5-0 run. Louisville battled back, and at the media timeout it was anyone's set, with the Cards in the lead 15-14. Going on a 3-0 run out of the media timeout, with DeBeer and Scott both recording aces, Cal was forced to use their first timeout down 19-15. Out of Cal's timeout, Elena Scott got her third ace of the set, with the Cards on a 4-0 run up 20-15. Following libero Gianna Bartalo's second ace of the set for Cal, Louisville took their first timeout, while up 21-18. Coming out of Louisville's timeout, the Golden Bears went on a 3-0 run to only be down 22-21, causing Louisville to take their final timeout. Louisville was able to clinch the match however, thanks to a 3-0 run to end it with DeBeer's fourth kill of the set being match point. The Cardinals hit .132 in the set, while holding California to .029. Maldonado-Diaz recorded three kills, and Elena Scott served three aces.