BERKELEY – The Cal Volleyball team was on the cusp of taking a 2 sets to 1 lead over No. 17 UCLA on Sunday, but the Bruins came back for a 21-25, 25-16, 26-24, 25-18 victory at Haas Pavilion.

After splitting the first two sets, the Bears (8-12, 0-10 Pac-12) led 24-23 in the third set only to watch UCLA (15-6, 6-4) win three points in a row to close it out. The Bruins then went on to win the fourth set to polish off the victory.

Senior outside hitter Christina Higgins continued her torrid recent play with 22 kills at a .362 hitting percentage while junior middle blocker Lillian Schonewise added 10 kills, six blocks and two aces. Higgins has now registered at least 18 kills in each of the past five matches and reached the 20-kill mark three times during that span. She also is averaging 4.90 kills per set during the stretch and 4.39 kills per set in Pac-12 matches.

The Bears led for almost the entire set, jumping out to leads of 6-2 and 12-8 but each time watching the Bruins slice into the lead. After Cal took a 19-14 lead, UCLA scored three in a row to cut the deficit to two. But the Bears held the Bruins off one last time to finish off the set.

UCLA rebounded strongly in the second set, forging a quick 4-0 lead and quickly extending it to 13-7. The Bears never got closer than five points the rest of the set.

Cal looked as though it might watch the Bruins run away with the third set as well after UCLA established a 12-7 lead. But the Bears came storming back, scoring eight of the next nine points to lead 15-13. Cal led 21-18 after a kill by Higgins but the Bruins notched three points in a row to tie up the set. The teams then exchanged points until the Bears led 24-23, but a pair of UCLA kills and an ace put the Bruins in front.

Most of the fourth set was close, with the Bears trailing 18-16, after a couple of UCLA hitting errors helped Cal slice the deficit in half. But the Bears only scored two more points the rest of the way and the Bruins prevailed in four sets.

Cal had three players in double-digits in digs, with sophomore libero Maddy Kerr leading the way with 13. Senior defensive specialist Marlee Davis added 11 digs and sophomore outside hitter Nikki Gomar had 10.

The Bears will return to action Friday at No. 11 Oregon at 8 p.m. The match will be televised by the Pac-12 Networks.