BERKELEY – California volleyball will conclude nonconference play this week with its first two home matches of the season, hosting Santa Clara and UCLA at Haas Pavilion on Wednesday and Saturday, respectively. Both matches are slated to be broadcast on ACCNX/ESPN+.
 
The Golden Bears (7-3) went 3-1 last week, starting off with a five-set victory over Saint Mary's before heading to the Buffs Invitational in Boulder, Colorado, where they faced Wyoming (W, 3-1), Colorado (L, 0-3) and UC Irvine (W, 3-1). Freshman Kate Mansfield was named All-Tournament after hitting .368 with 29 kills, including a 16-kill, .419 outing against UC Irvine. Junior Peyton DeJardin also made All-Tournament, posting 37 total kills on the weekend while recording a double-double and five service aces in the final match.
 
Vs. Santa Clara – Sept. 18, 7 p.m. PT
Last Meeting: Sept. 10, 2016 at Cal (L, 1-3)
Last Cal Win: Sept. 13, 2013 at Cal (3-0)
All-Time Record: 32-8
 
The Broncos (4-4) have lost two of their last three matches and will be looking to get back on track against the Bears on Wednesday. Cal will be the second Power 4 opponent that Santa Clara has faced this season; the only other such matchup was a 3-1 loss to Notre Dame in August. The Broncos are led by sophomore middle blocker Grace Flanagan, who paces the team with 30 blocks and 16 service aces on the year, as well as top attacker Alayna Crabtree (96 kills) and All-WCC Preseason selection Elena Radeff.
 
Vs. UCLA – Sept. 21, 1 p.m. PT (Dig Pink Game)
Last Meeting: Nov. 19, 2023 at UCLA (W, 3-1)
Last Cal Home Win: Nov. 3, 2013 at Cal (3-2)
All-Time Record: 10-73
 
The Bruins (5-2), who received 50 votes in this week's American Volleyball Coaches Assocation (AVCA)/TARAFLEXD Division I Poll, will take on UC Davis this week before heading to Berkeley on Saturday. To date, their only two losses are against ranked teams (No. 17 Tennessee, No. 25 TCU); all but one of their wins have been sweeps, with the lone five-set victory coming at No. 14 Georgia Tech. As a team, UCLA is posting 13.58 kills per set – the same as Cal – and is just ahead of the Bears' 12.92 assists per set with an average of 12.96; the Bruins' hitting percentage of .280, meanwhile, ranks 21st in the nation. Middle blocker Anna Dodson, a three-time All-Pac-12 honoree and 2023 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-America Honorable Mention, is averaging 1.14 blocks per set on the year, while setter Audrey Pak leads the squad in both assists (202) and digs (62).
 
LI LEADS
Sophomore outside hitter Xuemeng (Maggie) Li looks to take another step forward in her second year, following a sensational rookie season in which she was named a VolleyballMag All-America Honorable Mention, the AVCA Pacific West Region Freshman of the Year and All-Pacific West Region Honorable Mention, an All-Pac-12 team member and the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year. Her six Pac-12 Freshman of the Week awards also tied a conference record. In her freshman year, she posted 441 kills - third most among all Pac-12 players - with 4.35 points per set (4th Pac-12); she was also second on the team with 34 aces and third with 265 digs. After three weeks of play, Li stands atop the ACC with 165 kills (4.34 kills per set, 2nd ACC) and 182.5 points (4.80 points per set, 4th ACC). She has led the team in kills in all but one of 10 matches this season and has reached double-digits in all 10.
 
BREAKOUT YEAR FOR LAU
Junior setter Natalie Lau has started each of the past six matches for the Bears and is currently leading the ACC with an average of 10.82 assists per set; she also leads the team with 238 assists on the year and four double-doubles. Her first collegiate start came on Sept. 6 against Utah State, where she recorded 40 assists and 10 digs as well as three kills, two aces and two blocks; in the next match against Saint Mary's, she posted a career-high 64 assists (and 18 digs) for the best such outing of any ACC player in a five-set contest this year. She followed that up with another career performance three days later, recording four blocks against Wyoming in addition to 45 assists and 13 digs.
 
GLORY FOR GIANNA
Graduate transfer Gianna Bartalo, who spent her undergraduate career at Denver, has quickly become one of the Bears' top defensive players through the team's first three weeks of play. She has recorded double-digit digs in all 10 of Cal's matches so far, leading the ACC with 174 on the year at a second-place clip of 4.58 per set. As a Pioneer, Bartalo was named All-Summit League Honorable Mention in her senior year and ranked seventh on Denver's all-time career list with an average of 3.73 digs per set.
 
WECLOME TO THE ACC
The Bears wasted no time making their presence felt as new members of the ACC. For their performances in going 3-0 at the season-opening Rose City Showdown in Portland, sophomore Maggie Li and senior Annalea Maeder were named ACC Offensive Player of the Week and ACC Setter of the Week, respectively. Li averaged 4.45 kills per set - tops in the conference through the initial week - while hitting for a .281 percentage. Her 24 kills in a five-set win over USF tied a career high. Maeder dished out a conference-high 122 assists in Portland, including 60 in the victory over the Dons.
 
MAEDER'S MARK
Senior setter Annalea Maeder is coming off her best season yet, in which she earned All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention status for the first time in her career after totaling 1,037 assists (9.18 assists per set) and 46 service aces, the latter of which tied for the 10th-highest single-season total in program history and was the third most among all Pac-12 players. Maeder had 19 total matches with 30 or more assists; she also tied for a team-high 11 double-doubles and was second on the team with 286 digs. Currently, she ranks sixth in program history with 2,759 career assists and sixth with 123 career aces.
 
NEW CONFERENCE, NEW STAFF
Head coach Jen Malcom joined the Bears in January 2024 from UCLA, where she was the associate head coach in 2023; previously, she spent seven years at Iowa State as an assistant coach (2016-18) and associate head coach (2019-22), helping lead the Cyclones to five NCAA Tournament appearances. Also on staff are new assistant coaches Andrew Sato (Long Beach State), Cole Murray (Loyola Marymount) and Alyssa Andreno (Tennessee); Sato was previously a volunteer assistant coach at Cal (2017) and was most recently an assistant coach at Cal State Fullerton (2021-23), while Murray acted as an assistant coach at Campbell (2023) and Andreno at Winthrop (2022-23).
 
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