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UVU Timeout Huddle vs. Sacramento State

Utah Valley Heads to Riverside for Matches Against CBU, UC Riverside

10/28/2026 4:12:00 PM

OREM, Utah - Utah Valley women's volleyball hits the road this weekend for two matches in Riverside, California, beginning with former WAC rival California Baptist on Friday, Oct. 30, at 7 p.m. MT (6 p.m. PT). The Wolverines will wrap up the road trip on Saturday, Oct. 31, at 2 p.m. MT (1 p.m. PT) against UC Riverside.
 
BROADCAST INFO
Both matches this weekend will air on ESPN+. Live stats for Friday's match will be available at GoUVU.com/stats, while stats for Saturday's match can be found at GoHighlanders.com.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Wolverines are coming off a pair of wins over travel partner Sacramento State last week. Utah Valley defeated the Hornets in four sets on Thursday night in Sacramento before completing the series sweep in Orem on Saturday. The Wolverines are now 4-0 all-time against their fellow Big West newcomer.
 
Olivia Gloeckner led Utah Valley with 18 kills over the two matches, but the defense stole the spotlight. Alyvia Watkins recorded 10 blocks on Thursday night to help UVU finish with 17 team blocks in the match. Brielle Rueckert then tallied nine blocks on Saturday on her way to earning Big West Defensive Player of the Week honors.
 
ABOUT THE LANCERS
California Baptist enters the weekend with a 5-16 record and a two-match winning streak after defeating UC Riverside twice last week. The Lancers pushed the Wolverines to five sets in Orem back in September before Utah Valley rallied for a reverse-sweep victory.
 
Eleftheria Baxa leads California Baptist with 195 kills this season, while Emery Dejong ranks close behind as part of the Lancers' balanced attack. Setter Maddie Brown is coming off a strong week and earned Setter of the Week honors, while freshman Anaiya Campbell was named the conference's Rookie of the Week.
 
The Lancers' record can be deceiving. California Baptist has pushed several of the Big West's top teams to five sets, including Cal Poly, UC Irvine and UC Santa Barbara. CBU has played six five-set conference matches this season.
 
ABOUT THE HIGHLANDERS
UC Riverside is 4-17 overall and has lost its first 10 conference matches of the season. Andrea Brewer leads the Highlanders with 194 kills and averages 2.90 kills per set, but she was limited to just five kills on 20 attempts in the previous meeting with Utah Valley.
 
Malia Tanksley led UC Riverside's offense in Orem with 10 kills. The Highlanders also struggled to contain Miley Thunstrom, who finished with 17 kills for Utah Valley, while freshman Bree Carson added 13.
 
RUECKERT NAMED BIG WEST DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Rueckert became the third Wolverine this season to earn a conference weekly award, which is voted on by the league's sports information directors.
 
She opened the week with six blocks and six kills in Thursday's win over Sacramento State before recording nine blocks against the Hornets on Saturday, just three shy of the career high she set earlier this season against Radford.
 
UP NEXT
The Wolverines will conclude the home portion of their regular-season schedule next weekend by hosting UC San Diego on Thursday, Nov. 5, at 6 p.m. MT before celebrating Senior Day against UC Irvine on Saturday, Nov. 7, at 1 p.m. MT.
 
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