Malibu, California — The Utah Valley University women's volleyball team dropped its season opener in straight sets (25-19, 25-22, 26-24) against UC Santa Barbara in the first match of the Asics Classic hosted by Pepperdine on Friday.
 
Sophomore outside hitter Lexi Thompson and senior middle blocker Lauren Bakker combined to lead the Wolverines with 15 kills. Kiahna Steiner and Abby Jensen each added five kills, while sophomore Sierra Starley recorded 13 assists. Freshman Sabrina Tanner led the way with nine digs while Jensen added eight.  Jensen also added two service aces on the day. Bakker and Steiner finished with seven block assists each.
 
The Wolverines nearly recovered in the third set with a 5-0 run to close the gap to just 14-12. UCSB and Utah Valley exchanged possessions until 22-19, when costly Gaucho errors gave UVU a 24-22 lead. The Wolverines could not hang on after a kill from Ali Barbeau and a service ace from Shauna Klein, coupled with two more Santa Barbara kills, to help the Gauchos to seal their win 26-24.
 
The Wolverines will continue in the tournament when they face Pepperdine this evening at 8 p.m. MT.