Davis, Calif.—Latahevai Lousi and Haylee Nelson were the Spartans top hitters Friday as the San José State volleyball team opened the 2019 season at the Aggie Invitational hosted by UC Davis.
Lousi led the team with 11 kills and hit .292 (11-4-24) in the first match of the year against Pacific. She was the only hitter in double-digit kills for SJSU as the team lost in four sets, 26-24, 25-12, 24-26, 25-13.
For the match, the team hit .167 and had five service aces. Nelson and Tabea Schwarz each had nine kills, while Thaliana Grajeda added seven kills, two aces and two blocks.
The Spartans led the first set 24-21 and looked to win before the Tigers the final five points to win 26-24. Pacific used a 9-0 run in the second set to win 25-12.
SJSU trailed 24-21 in the third set before rallying to tie the set at 24-24 on a Schwarz kill from Bettenay. A Grajeda kill gave the Spartans the lead at 25-24, and a Tiger hitting error gave SJSU the 26-24 win in set three. Pacific won the final set 25-13.
Nelson recorded 10 kills and hit .474 as San José State lost to host UC Davis 3-0 (25-18, 25-16, 25-16). Grajeda added six kills on 10 attempts and no hitting errors.
Taumafa Tuinauvai made her debut in a Spartan uniform, taking nine swings with one kills and had two digs, one service ace and combine with Ryann Thomison for the only Spartan block of the match.
San José hit .195 for the match with 32 kills on 87 attempts and 15 errors. The team recorded three service aces but had 19 service errors.
On Saturday, the Spartans look for their first win of the season with a match against Montana at 12 p.m., at The Pavilion at UC Davis.
Aggie Invitational
UC Davis def. San José State – 3-0 (25-18, 25-16, 25-16).
Kills – SJSU – Haylee Nelson 10; UCD – Demari Webb 8.
Records – San José State 0-2; UC Davis 2-0.
Pacific def. San José State – 3-1 (26-24, 25-12, 24-26, 25-13).
Kills – SJSU – Latahevai Lousi 11; PAC – Riley Ramsey 12.
Records- San José State 0-1; Pacific 1-0.
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