NORTHRIDGE – The No. 15 Cal beach volleyball team bounced back from losses to three of the nation's top teams to close out its road trip with 3-2 victories over Cal State Northridge and Loyola Marymount on Thursday.

"It was challenging to play as hard as we did and come out with losses against those top teams," Cal coach Meagan Schmitt said. "The girls did a great job of putting that aside and taking care of business today."

The Bears' No. 4 and No. 5 pairs continued their successful seasons with a pair of victories. The No. 5 duo of junior Teya Neff and freshman Bridget Gustafson notched straight-set wins in each dual. The No. 4 pair of freshmen Iya Lindahl and Nicole Anderson prevailed in a hard-fought 21-16, 22-24, 15-10 victory over Northridge before dispatching of LMU's duo in straight sets.

The Bears' No. 3 pair of junior Bryce Bark and freshman Camille Stepanof registered their first victory together, a straight-set 21-11, 21-14 win over Loyola Marymount that clinched that dual for Cal.

"They got an early lead and did a great job of holding on to that lead," Cal head coach Meagan Schmitt said. "Usually when you get ahead by a lot, you tend to relax. They started strong and didn't let up putting the pressure on."

Cal's top pair of junior Jessica Gaffney and sophomore Mia Merino beat CSUN's No. 1 team 21-11, 21-14.

The Bears (10-4) began the road trip with matches against No. 6 Long Beach State, No. 3 UCLA and No. 1 USC.

"We gained such valuable experience by playing top-level teams," Schmitt said. "To be able to play the best teams in the country - we learned a lot as individuals, as pairs and as a team. We plan on taking that into the rest of the season." 

Cal next plays at Saint Mary's next Wednesday at 3 p.m.


 
No. 15 Cal 3, CSUN 2
No. 1: Mia Merino-Jessica Gaffney (Cal) def. Julie Haake-Katie Sato, 21-11, 21-14
No. 2: Nickeisha Williams-Maddie Leiphardt (CSUN) def. Grace Campbell-Olivia Rodberg, 23-21, 19-21, 15-11
No. 3: Aeryn Owens-Erin Indermill (CSUN) def. Bryce Bark-Camille Stepanof, 21-17, 16-21, 15-12
No. 4: Iya Lindahl-Nicole Anderson (Cal) def. Autumn Russell-Kristey Markle, 21-16, 22-24, 15-10
No. 5: Bridget Gustafson-Teya Neff (Cal) def. Nicolette Pinkney-Nicoletta Stork, 21-13, 21-11
 
No. 15 Cal 3, Loyola Marymount 2
No. 1: Sarah Sponcil-Savannah Slattery (LMU) def. Jessica Gaffney-Mia Merino, 21-18, 16-21, 18-16
No. 2: Jessie Prichard-Sara Kovac (LMU) def. Grace Campbell-Olivia Rodberg, 12-21, 21-17, 15-6,
No. 3: Bryce Bark-Camille Stepanof (Cal) def. Kekai Whitford-Brittany Estes, 21-11, 21-14
No. 4: Iya Lindahl-Nicole Anderson (Cal) def. Emma Doud-Veronica Nederend, 21-18, 21-11
No. 5: Bridget Gustafson-Teya Neff (Cal) def. Kristen Castellanos-Erin Williams, 21-17, 21-18