By Jenski Nonnarath – Spear Reporter | Members of the Spartans women’s volleyball team celebrate on the sideline after scoring a point against the Aggies on Oct. 16, 2026. (photo by Gabriella Kelly – Spear Photographer)
San Jose State women’s volleyball (6-12, 1-6 MW) lost to the University of California, Davis (9-9, 5-2 MW) 3-0 on Friday night at Spartan Gym.
The Spartans fought hard in the opening set but lost 26-24 after the Aggies scored the final three points. The Aggies’ offense controlled the final two sets, winning both 25-12.
The Spartans’ offense peaked in the opening set, recording a .286 hitting percentage. The team had a set point at 24-23 but failed to convert multiple chances at winning the set.
Junior setter Hanna Darvas’ service error gave the Aggies the lead before senior outside hitter Brooke Hibino’s kill ended the set.
“We’ve definitely lost our competitive edge after losing that first set,” SJSU head coach Todd Kress said.
The Spartans’ offense struggled in the next two sets. In the second set, their hitting percentage dropped to -.069 as the team committed 11 attack errors on 29 attempts. Then, in the third and final set, the offense had a .042 hitting percentage.
“If you’re going to win a match like this, you’ve got to stay in the fight, all three, four, five sets, whatever it takes. We were unwilling to do that tonight,” Kress said
The Spartans’ defense struggled with the Aggies’ service game. The Aggies recorded 9 service aces, including a match high of 5 in the third set. The Spartans had 11 Service errors, with a game high in the last set as well.
Redshirt senior right-side hitter Lolohea Fonua led the Spartans with 7 kills on 17 total attacks. Fonua had a .235 hitting percentage, which was second on the team. Senior outside hitter Devon DeNecochea led the team in hitting percentage with .278, having 6 kills on 18 total attacks.
The Aggies recorded 35 kills, outscoring the Spartans by 10. The Spartans had a .086 hitting percentage, while the Aggies had a .281. The Aggies led the game with 8 blocks compared to the Spartans’ 7 blocks. DeNecochea led the Spartans with 4 blocks.
The Aggies got off to a fast start in set two, going up 6-0 before the Spartans were able to get their first point of the set. Senior middle blocker Ava Hewitt-Smith‘s kill ended the Aggies’ 6-0 run. The Aggies’ offense never looked back after taking the early lead and went on to win the set 25-12.
“You have to stay in the fight, you have to have some competitive maturity and emotional maturity no matter what happens in the first set,” Kress said.
SJSU will play the University of California, Davis at 5 p.m. on Saturday at Spartan Gym in San Jose, Calif.
