Syracuse Volleyball drops its last home matchup to California in straight sets
By Brooke Killgore | @BKillgore13
In its final home game of the season, Syracuse Volleyball concluded its final home game of the season in a straight-set loss to California. The Orange witnessed domination from a tough Golden Bears front line as well as SU’s struggle to find momentum after a hard-fought first set.
Kicking off the match the day before Thanksgiving, SU looked to respond to what had happened last time against Cal. On October 12, the Orange suffered a reverse comeback after leading the Golden Bears 2-0 and losing in the fifth.
The first set showcased SU outside hitter Skylar George’s ability as she recorded three kills early on. Her play appeared in key moments for the Orange, stopping several back-to-back plays for Cal. The Golden Bears would respond with six consecutive points to retake the lead. Outside hitter Xuemeng (Maggie) Li pushed the Orange defensive line to its max with five kills in the first. Going into the media timeout, Cal led 16-9 and looked to run away with a first-set victory. Coming out of the break, the ‘Cuse found its stride and went on a dominant second-half run, retaking the lead at one point 20-19. Syracuse and Cal traded off points off of service errors, kills, and aces but the Golden Bears prevailed 27-25 to secure the first set.
The close-competition momentum seen in the first set struggled to make its way into the second as Syracuse lost control of the match. Cal quickly jumped ahead to a 9-3 lead and while SU slowly kept up, the deficit would become 20-8. A couple of service and hitting errors would give the Orange enough to break 15 points but the Golden Bears quickly reached 25 and closed out the second set 25-15.
The third set proved to be the end of the road for SU as Cal racked up points left and right, leaving Syracuse to grasp at straws. Li looked to be unstoppable, as she added to her 15-kill total with five points, and finished the day with a .393 hitting percentage. The 2023 PAC-12 Freshman of the Year closed out the set with an ace, completing Cal’s sweep 25-8 and moving them to 6-13 in ACC play. The Golden Bears finished the matchup with 51 total kills, a .351 hitting percentage, five service aces, and 51 digs. The Orange on the other hand only recorded 23 kills with a .021 hitting percentage — not its lowest of the season. George led Syracuse with eight kills overall along with an ace.
Syracuse moves to 2-17 in ACC play, with a 14-17 overall record. The ‘Cuse heads to Blacksburg, Va. to face Virginia Tech on Friday. The last time the Orange faced the Hokies, SU secured its first ACC victory in a five-set standoff. The first serve is set for 1:30 p.m.
