Box Score Box Score
PORTLAND, Ore. --- The UC Irvine Anteaters defeated the Portland Pilots 3-0 Friday afternoon on the second day of the 2008 Nike Invitational at the Chiles Center. Irvine took the match 25-22, 25-14 and 25-16.
Senior Ashley Grayson finished with 10 kills for the Pilots (1-4), while senior Jennifer Sheedy had seven.
Irvine’s (3-2) Lauren Kellerman led both teams with a match-high 16 kills.
The first set began with a back-and-forth rally between the teams. At 8-7, the Pilots picked up momentum with a four-point run. Moments later UP enjoyed its largest lead of the set at 18-12 thanks to a spree of kills from Grayson, Sheedy and junior Maria Clemens. However, the Anteaters battled back on a 13-4 run, sneaking out the win by a 25-22 margin.
The second set began much like the first with neither team able to gain much of an advantage. At 4-4, UCI pulled ahead with a five-point streak and never looked back. This set the tone for the rest of the game, with the Anteaters being unrelenting in their attack.
The Pilots showed great character by battling back strong in the third set. Trailing by seven early, Portland was able to put some points together to pull within four. A kill by freshman Marissa Plummer made it a 14-10 game in Irvine’s favor. From there, UCI stepped up its attack, finishing the set and match with an 11-6 run.
UC Irvine finished with an attacking percentage of .351, while UP countered with a .153 mark.
Portland junior Kaylyn Jones finished with 12 assists on the afternoon, while senior K.C. Fox had a team-high five digs.
Irvine’s Taryn Robertson finished with 35 assists and 11 digs for the double-double.
Portland re-takes the court on Friday evening with a 7:00 p.m. match against No. 20 Kansas State, following the match between South Florida and Arizona State.
Earlier Friday afternoon, Kansas State defeated Arizona State 3-0.
The tournament concludes on Saturday at the Chiles Center with matches between UC Irvine and Arizona State at 9:30 a.m. and Kansas State and South Florida at 12:00 p.m. Portland and South Florida close the tourney with 7:00 p.m. match.
