IRVINE, Calif. – California volleyball hit .453 as a team to open the UC Irvine Invitational with a 25-15, 25-15, 25-13 sweep over the North Carolina Tar Heels on Friday afternoon at the Bren Events Center.

The Bears committed only two attack errors on 97 swings as a team and were led by a 14-kill effort from senior outside hitter Maddie Haynes, who hit a career-best .542 on 24 swings. Reigning Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week Savannah Rennie tallied 10 kills on a .556 hitting percentage, her second-straight outing with double-digit finishes. The senior also recorded five digs and four block assists.   

It was a dominant effort from the Bears, who won the hitting percentage battle .453-.079. UNC had just 27 kills to Cal's 48, and tallied 52 digs to best the 33 recorded by North Carolina.

"Maddie was very good for us today, really across the board," Cal head coach Sam Crosson said. "She handled her blocking assignments really well, made a lot of good decisions and is starting to move the ball around a little bit with some range. I like to see her starting to apply some shots we've been working on in practice. For her to perform like that in an extended amount of time for three sets is certainly a bright spot for us. She is someone this team is going to need to be successful."

Cal (4-0) jumped out early in the first frame, using an eight-point run to build an 11-3 lead, one they wouldn't give back. Haynes recorded six kills and junior Mima Mirkovic tallied five to lead the Bears in the opening set.

Both teams battled early in the second set, trading points and five lead changes before the Bears went on another run to put away the Heels (0-3) again. California put it on cruise control in the final frame, leading from start to finish on the way to the sweep.

"We made a lot of progress since last weekend in terms of our execution during the match," Crosson said. "We were better in terms of processing and trusting the scouting report, and overall we were very clean today. We were energized and we were focused. We came out well from the start and good things happened. We created a lot of chances and our passers were very dialed in. This team is starting to understand they can control a lot of things and that's a big step for us."

Mirkovic finished with nine kills and 11 digs in the match, while senior Emma Smith recorded 12 digs for the Bears. Senior Bailee Huizenga added seven kills to go along with seven digs and sophomore Gabby Bellizzi notched seven digs of her own. Junior setter Isabel Potter tallied 36 assists and just one error on 78 attempts.

"I'm pleased to see the progress and the performance today and we have another two big matches to prep for," Crosson said. "We'll see if we can get another couple of victories tomorrow."

Up Next: California finishes the UC Irvine Invitational on Saturday beginning with a 10 a.m. PT first serve against UNLV, followed by the nightcap at 7 p.m. PT against the host Anteaters.