BERKELEY – Wait, Lillian Schonewise graduated, right?

She sure did, but it was hard to tell the way sophomore middle blocker Belen Castillo played Sunday.

Castillo put down a career-high 20 kills – tied for the most by a Cal player this season – and the Bears registered a benchmark victory with a 25-22, 23-25, 20-25, 25-23, 15-11 win over previously red-hot Arizona at Haas Pavilion.

For the second time in three matches, Castillo registered a career-high in kills. The majority of her kills Sunday came on the slide play – a maneuver that defined Schonewise's All-American career in Berkeley.

"If we can figure out how to do that the rest of the season, we'll be in good shape," Cal coach Rich Feller said. "Belen is kind of accepting her role as a starter and getting more and more aggressive. She's gaining more confidence."

Castillo committed just two hitting errors for an impressive .562 percentage. She had 16 kills last Sunday in a win over No. 19 Colorado.

"It's a lot about confidence," Cal setter Alyssa Jensen said. "We are building a relationship and getting that connection. A lot of it is building trust between us."

Jensen was Schonewise's starting setter for two years, and the former middle blocker ended her career with the fourth-highest career hitting percentage ever at Cal (.325). Schonewise's .370 percentage last season is the sixth-best single-season mark ever for the Bears.

In the past three matches, Castillo is putting up Schonewise-like numbers – a 3.33 kills/set average with a .373 hitting percentage.

"She's hitting harder and smarter. She's growing a lot as a player," Jensen said. "I definitely had a lot of practice setting the slide with Lillian. It's one of those sets where you have to trust the middle. It's a trust thing."

Senior middle blocker Jenelle Jordan added 13 kills at a .440 percentage. The Bears' middle blockers combined for 33 kills at a .509 clip Sunday.

Junior outside hitter Christine Alftin had 12 kills and 10 digs and senior libero Maddy Kerr had 23 digs – her third 20-dig performance of the season.

It appeared the Wildcats had the Bears on the ropes after coming back from a 21-17 deficit to win the second set and pulling away at the end of the third. But Cal kept the fourth set close throughout, and after Castillo put down a kill and Jensen hammered an Arizona overpass, it gave the Bears a 24-22 advantage. The Wildcats got one of the points back, but Alftin ended the set with a kill to force the fifth and deciding set.

Cal jumped on Arizona immediately in the fifth set, racing out to a 4-0 lead. Cal ultimately extended it to 14-8 for match point, but the Wildcats scored three in a row to force a Bears timeout at 14-11. Freshman Maddie Haynes came up with a kill on the next point to close out the victory.

The Wildcats entered the day having won three in a row over ranked teams on the road.

 "It was great to see us battle like that," Feller said. "We had a short-term memory after Friday (a four-set loss to Arizona State) and played a team that can get as hot as anybody. That was great to see."

Cal returns to action Friday at USC at 6 p.m. The match will air on the Pac-12 Networks.