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Box Score 2 REDLANDS, Calif. (Sept. 11, 2021) – Senior Megan Wang (Henderson, Nev. / Advanced Tech. Acad.) recorded her 1,000th career dig among a plethora of superb individual performances as Caltech volleyball swept a doubleheader against the University of Antelope Valley and Providence Christian College at the Redlands Mini-Tournament in Saturday morning to move to 3-2 on the young season.
Wang – already the program record holder after just two seasons – notched the milestone statistic in the first match on the day despite only being called upon to make 12 total in the lopsided 3-0 victory over the University of Antelope Valley. She bettered that mark and then some in the nightcap, adding 14 to go with 10 assists for her second career double-double.
Junior Dallas Taylor (Phoenix, Ariz. / Saguaro) and sophomore Halle Blend (Farmers Branch, Texas / Hockaday) once again stood out in particular as major keys in Caltech's success. Taylor recorded her third and fourth consecutive double-digit kill totals and is now averaging 2.76 per set on the second-best hitting percentage in the SCIAC at an exceptional .395 clip. She has rounded out a rare all-around line for any player, adding .86 blocks and 1.10 digs per set – no one in the conference has maintained an average of even .75 in both since 2014 All-SCIAC First Team selection Kelsi Robinson of NCAA qualifier University of La Verne.
Blend continued to demonstrate her almost prescient awareness while racking up her third and fourth double-doubles of the season, including her first match with more than 10 assists per set (12.3 vs. UAV) and a career-high 49 assists and four service aces in the five-set victory over PCC. She also chipped in six kills on 15 total attacks for a .267 hitting percentage.
Caltech hung with UAV early before a 9-2 run put the first set out of reach and recovered from early deficits to do the same in the second and third for the clear victory. The Beavers claimed the first two sets against PCC as well before running into some trouble as the Sea Beggars ran off eight straight points to end the third set and narrowly survived the fourth, 25-23. Caltech regained its composure to open the deciding fifth set, however, jumping out to a 7-1 edge courtesy of forcing several PCC errors en route to the win.
Senior Alison Noyes (Falmouth, Maine / Falmouth) paced Caltech in the first match with UAV unable to find an answer for the imposing middle blocker. She smacked 15 kills in just three sets at a .423 clip and added the Beavers' only block of the match. Sophomore Angel Wang (Colorado Springs, Colo. / Pine Creek) notched her first career kill before doubling that total in the following match, while senior Isabell Yang (Arcadia, Calif. / Arcadia) enjoyed her third career double-double three years after her most recent, tallying a team-high 14 kills and 16 digs in a crucial effort. Noyes added another three blocks and 11 kills while hitting .320 with Taylor chipping in 12 and sophomore Claire Perhach (Carlsbad, Calif. / Sage Creek) recording her first career double-digit kill performance as the featured attacker with 13 on a team-high 36 attempts. Senior Sydney Richardson (Granite Bay, Calif. / Roseville) also contributed a clean seven kills with only a single error as Caltech posted one of its most efficient hitting percentages in team history.
