SANTA CLARA, Calif.---The Pilots rallied in three straight must-win sets to defeat Santa Clara 3-2 in a West Coast Conference volleyball match at Leavey Center on Monday evening. The Pilots claimed their second conference win this season with set scores of 23-25, 26-28, 25-16, 25-22, and 16-14.
 
Freshman standout Mia Wesley produced a career-high 30 kills against the Broncos, which ties the WCC single-match record this season, while also contributing 15 digs to register her third double-double on the year. Senior Liz Reich added a season-high 11 kills, and Kellie Hughes was the second Pilot to record a double-double with 31 assists and 12 digs. Senior Carey Williams finished with 28 digs and sophomore Grace Zilbert provided 24 for the Pilots' defense.
 
Both the first and second sets stayed closely contested, but Santa Clara (1-4, 1-4 WCC) was able to hold off Portland (2-9, 2-9 WCC) by a two-point margin each time to go ahead 2-0 heading into the third frame.
 
Two Wesley kills built a three-point Pilots edge to open the third set, but SCU crawled back to level the score 6-6, before a three-point swing handed the lead back to Portland. Three more Wesley attacks in a row pushed the Pilots' advantage up to five, and the cushion would extend to as many as six following scores from Reich and freshman Jiana Lawson. Wesley scored Portland's last five points to secure the set, which was dominated throughout by the Pilots.
 
Portland jumped out to a 3-1 lead to begin the fourth frame with kills from Jayde Harris and Reich, before the Broncos were able to bring it level. SCU found a 9-5 edge soon after, but a 4-0 Portland run tied the set 9-9 after two more Harris attacks. Three more ties ensued, but the visiting side reclaimed a two-point lead about midway through after Reich and Wesley scores. A service ace from sophomore setter Noelani Helm made it 17-14 in the Pilots' favor, and Portland would manage their steady gap until the end. Wesley closed out the set with a cross-court shot to force the deciding frame.
 
Freshman Nevaeh Bray got the scoring started for the Pilots in set five, who went in front 5-3 before Santa Clara tied it at 5s and 6s. A 3-0 Pilots run prompted a Broncos timeout, and SCU would come out of the break on a run of their own which evened the score once more. The Pilots proceeded to go ahead by one on three occasions, which SCU answered each time. Moments later, a challenged play would stand for Portland and give them a chance at match point. Santa Clara would respond, but the Pilots' defense came up huge and a block from Chelsey Harmon and Lawson eventually sealed the come from behind victory for Portland.
 
"Great win tonight!" said head coach Megan Burton. "We found our groove in the last three sets and won the serve and pass battle to finish the match. Mia did an awesome job offensively going off for 30 kills tonight."
 
"Our defense also stepped up big time with Carey and Grace both having 20 plus digs. Santa Clara has some big guns on the pin and our defense made some good upgrades against them in the last three sets. Tonight we played at the level we are capable of and I'm proud of my team for finishing. We'll get some rest and make sure we're ready to go tomorrow. Santa Clara is a good team and we know they will respond well. We'll continue to take care of our side of the net. Go Pilots!"
 
The Pilots and Santa Clara will play a rematch of today's game tomorrow, starting at 2:00 p.m.