SAN DIEGO - UC San Diego fell below UC Santa Barbara in the Big West standings on Friday night. The Gauchos came away with a 3-1 win (21-25, 25-21, 25-16, 25-18) at LionTree Arena. The Tritons and Gauchos were tied in the standings coming into the match, with 10-11 records (6-4 in conference play). UC San Diego fell to No. 6 in the Big West standings.
Coming off a 1-1 series against UC Irvine last weekend, the Tritons struggled on Military and First Responder Appreciation Night. UC San Diego has never won a home game against UC Santa Barbara, historically 1-11 against the Gauchos. Their first win against them came in November of 2025.
UC San Diego’s Dillyn Griffin. Miguel Mejia/Miguel Mejia Photography
Set one
Notably without Ireland McNees, the first set opened with some back-and-forth scoring from the Tritons and Gauchos. The Tritons struggled to keep their lead to start set one - the Gauchos stayed within one through 11-10. No matter, UC San Diego superfan Billy Morris’ energy kept the Tritons afloat and the team gained a 15-11 lead. But the Gauchos climbed back once again, tying at 16. Later, he Tritons climbed up by about four points, only to be chased down by UC Santa Barbara. The Tritons hit the 20-point mark first, trailed closely by the Gauchos at 18. Climbing once again to a four point lead, UC San Diego inched closer to holding the first set, 21-18. Molly McCluskey’s team-high seventh kill of the game brought the score to 23-19, though UC Santa Barbara presented a quick scare with two consecutive points. After a brief timeout, the Tritons ultimately took the first set 25-21. McCluskey led the first set’s stats with eight kills, Brynne McGhie had seven assists and Paulina Baillie earned five digs.
“I loved our competitive grit there,” said UC San Diego Head Coach Spencer McLachlin of the first set. “It was a really great example of how a team can come out and punch first… I was really proud at how we sustained our focus and our execution.”
Set two
A run-and-dive dig by UC Santa Barbara opened the second set, though the Tritons responded to take a 4-1 lead. Later, three consecutive Triton kills kept them up 9-4. “Double the score!” chanted UC San Diego’s lively band, brought on by a 10-5 Triton lead. Again, the Gauchos came back, tying the Tritons at 12 before taking a 16-13 lead. This time it was UC Santa Barbara that hit 20 points first, trailed by the Tritons at 18, a reversal of that moment in the first set. The Gauchos took the second set 25-21, also a reversal of the first set’s final score. McCluskey led set 2 with 11 kills, McGhie still owned the assists at 16, and Baillie dominated with eight digs.
“It was serving. They got us out of our system,” said Coach McLachlin. “The new libero served for [UC Santa Barbara], and she went on a nice run and took the wind out of our sails.”
Set three
The third set started closer than the first two, the Tritons and Gauchos tying at one, four, five, six, seven, and eight. The Tritons stayed within three points through 16-13. UC Santa Barbara won five of the next seven points to go up 21-15. The Tritons took a timeout hoping to regroup but the break proved unsuccessful, as the Gauchos scored on a Triton attack error immediately out of the break. A powerful kill from UC Santa Barbara earned them their 23rd point, followed by a long rally that ended in their 24th with yet another kill. One last kill gave the Gauchos the third set, 25-16. At the end of the third set, McCluskey continued to lead with 13 kills, McGhie owned a team-high 18 assists, and Marleena Catalan broke into the stats with 11 digs.
UC San Diego’s Molly McCluskey. Miguel Mejia/Miguel Mejia Photography
Set four
Now down two sets to one and desperately trying to stay alive, the Tritons did not open the fourth set on a positive note. The Tritons went down 8-2, but they revived themselves to come within two to UC Santa Barbara 9-7, but the Gauchos kept the lead, 13-8. Bad turned into worse for the Tritons, now down 16-9, the team just could not catch a break. The Tritons remained down by seven and were now out of timeouts. The Gauchos quickly hit the 20-point mark, up by seven. UC San Diego found some momentum from an attack error, a kill and service ace, though this was quickly broken by a service error. The Tritons were still down 21-17, then 22-18, then 23-18. The Gauchos ultimately took the fourth set 25-18 and won the match three sets to one.
End of game stats were led by McCluskey with 15 kills (on a .167 hitting percentage), McGhie with 22 assists, Catalan with 11 digs, and Madison Johnson with six block assists.
Up next for the Tritons is Saturday night’s home match against Cal Poly, undefeated so far in conference play.
“[Cal Poly] runs a little bit faster of an offense, so our block is going to have to adjust,” said Coach McLachlin. “It actually might be easier for us because it’s a similar offense to ours… they’re number one for a reason. I would like our competitive grit to last more than a set and a half, and I know it can.”
UC San Diego will be looking to reach .500 on a spooky Halloween night. The match will start at 5 p.m. in LionTree and can be streamed on ESPN+.
Top photo via Miguel Mejia/Miguel Mejia Photography
