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at Cal State Bakersfield
10/23/2025 | 6:30 PM
Oct. 23 (Thu) / 6:30 PM
at Cal State Bakersfield
LA JOLLA, Calif. — UC San Diego women’s volleyball fell to Hawai’i in three sets, 25-19, 25-19, 25-21, on Saturday evening. The Tritons (4-16, 2-6 Big West) set an attendance record in LionTree Arena but were unable to come away with the win over the Rainbow Wahine (7-12, 3-5 Big West).
Maria Fernanda Afonso led the Tritons with 10 kills, while Molly McCluskey added nine and Katie Rapp finished with eight. Maija Nepszy tallied 27 assists and five digs in the contest, while Paulina Baillie led the team with 12 digs and added five assists. Three Tritons recorded two blocks apiece.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The teams kept things close to begin the opening set before Hawai’i broke away on a six-point scoring run to lead, 10-6. A kill by Rapp and a UH hitting error pulled the Tritons back within two, 11-9, but the Bows stalled UC San Diego’s momentum with a 3-0 run to go back up, 14-9. Hawai’i extended its lead with consecutive kills and a block to lead, 20-13. The Tritons rallied late with back-to-back kills by Rapp and Afonso but the deficit proved too much at Hawai’i took the opening set, 25-19.
The second set started similarly to the first, with the teams knotted at 6-6 early on. Hawai’i then scored seven unanswered points to build a comfortable 13-6 advantage. The Tritons found some momentum late, putting together a 4-1 scoring run behind a pair of kills from McCluskey and one from Afonso to make it, 21-18. The Rainbow Wahine answered with a three-point run of their own to reach set point, eventually taking the set, 25-19.
Hawai’i took another early lead in set three, jumping in front, 10-5, and extending its lead to as many as six points at 16-10. UC San Diego rallied midway through the set behind a kill by Ireland McNees, followed by back-to-back blocks with Lucia Barroso and McNees and a Kayla Uhlick ace to pull the Tritons within one, 16-15. The Bows held off the UC San Diego attack to maintain their advantage down the stretch and reached match point, 24-19. Back-to-back kills by Afonso kept the Tritons in the fight but UH secured a kill to take the set, 25-21, and the match, 3-0.
TRITON TIDBITS
UP NEXT
The Tritons will wrap up the first half of conference play on the road at Cal State Bakersfield (Oct. 23) and home against CSUN (Oct. 25). The matches will be broadcast on ESPN+ and live statistics will be available via UCSDTritons.com.
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of The Big West in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 84 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world’s preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.