Riverside, Calif. - The Golden Eagles women's volleyball had their comeback fall short, against the University of California – Merced, eventually falling 3-2 (25-20, 25-21, 20-25, 19-25, 15-9). After falling behind 2-0, La Sierra answered by winning the next two sets, sending the match to a decisive fifth set, where the Bobcats took control to claim victory.

The difference in the match proved to be the play at the net by the Bobcats who finished with 12 team blocks (two solo blocks and 20 block assists) compared to only three team blocks for the Golden Eagles.

Aside from that statistical line, the numbers prove the match to be relatively even.

The Golden Eagles finished the match with 63 kills, while the Bobcats countered with 58 kills. The Bobcats held a slight advantage in hitting percentage, as they tallied a .220 attack percentage compared to .183 for the Golden Eagles. La Sierra had a slight advantage in service aces (7-6) and in digs (94-93).

Michele Mendizabal led all players with 18 kills and was one of four Golden Eagles who finished the match in double-figures for kills. Kiana Krumm and Taylor Moran each added 14 kills in the match, with Kiana Velasco contributing 12 kills.

The team also had four players who finished in double-figures for digs. Emily Morgan led the way with 31 digs, followed by Krumm with 14 digs and Daniella Alvarez and Smriti Sharma who each picked up 11 digs.

Sharma and fellow setter Marissa Fregoso directed the offense with 26 assists and 27 assists, respectively.

The loss drops the Golden Eagles (8-9) back into a tie for third place with the Bobcats, in the Cal Pac standings, with a record of 4-3.

The women's volleyball team will now head back out onto the road starting with two matches up in Northern California next weekend to start the second round of conference play. On Friday, the Golden Eagles will visit Pacific Union College, followed by a Saturday night match at Simpson University.