SHREVEPORT, La. – The UC Santa Cruz women's volleyball team picked up a 3-0 (25-20, 25-18, 25-13) sweep over the Centenary Ladies to wrap up their regular season. The Slugs hit at a .370 clip with 10 kills from Heidi Collins while Madie Marshall led the team with five aces. Margo Melgoza dished out 28 assists and recorded nine digs. UC Santa Cruz will return home as they prepare to host the C2C Women's Volleyball Conference on Nov. 14 and Nov. 15.
 
How It Happened
UC Santa Cruz jumped out to an early 8-2 advantage in set one but wasn't quite in the clear as Centenary battled back to take a 13-10 lead. The Slugs responded with a 5-0 run with kills from Kate Lau and Heidi Collins but battled back once again, regaining the lead at 18-16. From there, the Slugs used a 5-0 run to go up 21-18 before closing out the set with a 4-2 advantage to win 25-20.
 
The Ladies struck first in set two, but UCSC used a 7-0 run with kills from Mia Ngo, Gabia Paliulis, and Chisom Okaforize to take a 9-3 lead. The Slugs didn't relinquish their advantage despite Centenary closing the gap to two points at 18-16. The Slugs used a 7-2 run down the stretch to take set two 25-18 with kills from Margo Melgoza, Chisom Okaforize, and Ella Sniezek.
 
The Banana Slugs made quick work of set three despite the early 4-2 advantage from Centenary. UCSC took the lead at 6-4 with the Ladies staying close momentarily at 7-6, but six unanswered points from UCSC gave the Slugs a 13-6 lead. UC Santa Cruz outscored Centenary 12-7 down the stretch with strong attacks from Maddie Marshall, Mia Ngo, Gabia Paliulis, and Heidi Collins.