Grote's Career Day Not Enough Against No. 17 Utah

BERKELEY – Lydia Grote recorded a new career-high 21 kills as California volleyball battled, but fell 24-26, 20-25, 19-25 to No. 17 Utah Sunday afternoon at Haas Pavilion.

Leah Schmidt added 10 kills on .321 hitting for the Bears (7-12, 0-8 Pac-12).

The Bears had 44 digs to Utah's 41 and both teams had 44 kills on the day.

Dani Drews had a team-high 15 kills for the Utes (12-5, 5-3 Pac-12). 

How It Happened:
Cal used a 5-1 run to go up 20-18 on the 10th kill of the first set for Grote as Utah used its first timeout. The visitors rallied, however, scoring three straight for a first match point at 24-23. Leah Schmidt answered with a kill to tie the score before Utah took the final two points and the set.

The second frame was back-and-forth early until four straight Utah points made it 13-8 in favor of the Utes. The Bears got to within two, 15-13, after back-to-back kills from Bella Bergmark and Grote, but four of the next five points went to Utah as they finished off the set. The Utes finished off the match in the third taking an early 8-2 advantage to put the Bears away.    

Up Next: The Bears head back to the Pacific Northwest on Friday, Oct. 22 for a 7 p.m. first serve against Washington. The match will be broadcast on the Pac-12 Networks.   

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