Aug. 25, 2017
San Jose, Calif.--Starting the 2017 season in dramatic flair, the San José State volleyball team went the distance plus some in a 3-2 win over Pepperdine Friday evening inside Spartan Gym as part of the SJSU/USF Tournament.
Two Spartan players recorded their first double-doubles of the year in the win. Giulia Gávio led all hitters with 29 kills and 14 digs. She hit .333 for the match and added two blocks in the win. Mariana Mantellato recorded career-bests of 51 assists and 10 digs for her first double-double as a Spartan.
Two other Spartans recorded double-digit kills as Nandyala Gama had 17 kills, while Fernanda Vido added 12 kills. Gama and Thaliana Grajeda led the team with five blocks each.
Defensively, five Spartans were in double-figure digs - Jamie Hirai at 15, Gávio with 14, Luiza Andrade with 12, Vido at 11, and Mantellato with 10.
After falling 25-20 in the first set, San José State took a 2-1 advantage, winning 25-20 and 25-23. In the third set, the Spartans were tied 23-23 before back-to-back kills by Gama and Mantellato sealed the set.
Pepperdine won the fourth set 25-21, scoring four of the final five points to send the match to a fifth and deciding set.
In the fifth set, Pepperdine took an early before the Spartans opened up a 10-6 lead. The Waves would not recede and the two teams battled through three set points before San Jose State won 18-16 on a Pepperdine hitting error.
San José State hit .269 for the match and won the blocking battle, 10.5-9. The team also had eight service aces and 65 digs in the win.
The Spartans travel up Interstate 280 on Saturday for a match at San Francisco beginning at 7 p.m.
SJSU/USF Tournament
San José State def. Pepperdine - 3-2 (20-25, 25-20, 25-23, 21-25, 18-16).
Kills - PEP - Heidi Dyer 16, Hannah Frohling 14, Jasmine Gross 11.
SJSU - Giulia Gávio 29, Nandyala Gama 17, Fernanda Vido 12.
Records - Pepperdine 1-1; San José State 1-0.
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