Toreros nearly upset Huskers

No. 25 USD volleyball comes within three points of upsetting No. 2 Nebraska

Anderson Haigler / Associate Editor / The USD Vista

In taking on the No. 2 team in the nation, many women’s volleyball programs would be satisfied with a close match. Perhaps content to simply hang with a top-ranked opponent, make the contest competitive, and have a good showing in front of a packed crowd. The 25th-ranked Toreros did all of that last Saturday night in the Jenny  Craig Pavilion against No. 2 University of Nebraska, but they likely weren’t satisfied. 

Though they battled valiantly through five sets with the Huskers (4-0), No. 25 USD (2-3) probably wasn’t happy to settle for what ultimately resulted in a hard-fought 3-2 defeat. That’s not to say they didn’t play well at times — they did. Throughout the two sets they won, the first of which being just the second set the Huskers had ceded all year, they showed why they are, and will continue to be a dangerous team throughout the regular season and postseason. And in a decisive fourth set they had Nebraska on the ropes, leading by a score of 22-21 at one point — just three points away from an upset victory. It’s just that with the talent and experience within San Diego’s roster, wins in matches like those are well within their reach. 

“I think that we had the same amount of a chance to win that match that Nebraska did, and I think that was unexpected from everybody (except for us),” senior outside hitter Thana Fayad said after the game. “But we came out and expected to win, and had the full confidence that we could’ve done it.”

Though the first set did not begin on a promising note for USD, it proved to be an impressive one for the Toreros. After senior setter Anna Newsome began the match with a service error on the first serve of the contest, San Diego immediately bounced back by taking advantage of an attack error by Nebraska’s Jazz Sweet. They would go back to trailing for the next few points until a kill by redshirt first year middle blocker Lauren Turner again evened the score, this time at five points apiece. This tie would lead to a 6-5 Torero advantage, their first of the evening. Kills from Fayad, first-year opposite hitter Grace Frohling and sophomore outside hitter Katie Lukes allowed USD to push their lead to as large as three points (11 to 8) before the Huskers surged back with an 8-1 run to take a 16-12 lead. A trio of attack errors by Nebraska, kills from Turner and Fayad, and a service ace from junior outside hitter Roxie Wiblin helped San Diego to even the score at 18, however, and they wouldn’t trail again. The Toreros were able to finish the set strong despite letting the Huskers tie the score for the fourth and final time of the set at 19, going on to win the frame by a score of 25-22 after a kill by Lukes sealed the victory. The set win, which gave USD a 1-0 lead in the match, marked just the second time the Huskers had been defeated so far this season.

After the match, USD volleyball head coach Jennifer Petrie described her team’s early success. 

“I think we were passing well,” Petrie said. “Our servers got the ball and got them out of system a little bit. We used the edge of their block pretty well, we just played pretty smart volleyball.”

The second set did not fare nearly as well for San Diego.  After the Huskers jumped out to an 8-3 lead, USD was unable to recover, trailing for the entirety of the set before losing by a score of 25-19 despite besting Nebraska in kills by a 12-11 margin. Their success in the kills column may have been offset by points they gave back — they recorded seven total errors in the frame to the Huskers’ five. 

In the third set, however, the Toreros appeared to return to form. In a frame that featured 18 ties and eight lead changes, USD battled in a fierce back-and-forth effort with Nebraska, utilizing seven kills from Lukes, four from senior middle blocker Megan Jacobsen, and three from Wiblin to trade nearly every point with the Huskers up until the score was knotted at 19-19. On the ensuing point, an attack error from Nebraska’s Madi Kubik gifted the Toreros a 20-19 edge, prompting a timeout by the visiting squad. Kills from Lukes and Wiblin paired with  another attack error from Nebraska stretched the Torero lead to 24-20 after the break, but the Huskers weren’t done yet. Lexi Sun notched back-to-back kills in an attempt to stave off a USD win, but first-year Frohling was able to seal the deal for San Diego with a kill to end the set, marking a 25-22 victory for the Toreros that moved the score to 2-1 in favor of the home team. Fayad, who recorded five kills and a service ace across the two sets that her team won on the evening, weighed in on her team’s performance in those frames. 

“Our coaches said that we followed the game plan really well,” Fayad said. “Which was to take advantage of a weaker left side block on the pins, and to make sure we were picking up all of the little scrappy plays — which we did really well in those two sets, but we could’ve done a better job of that in the fourth and fifth set.” 

Like Fayad mentioned, the successes the Toreros had in the first and third sets may not have carried over into the fourth and fifth. Another back-and-forth battle saw the score tied deep into the frame, with both teams deadlocked at 21 points each as the set entered its final stages. Boosted by seven more kills from Frohling, USD was within three points of an upset of the No. 2 team in the country as they took a 22-21 lead deep into the fourth set. Like elite teams often do, though, the Huskers came back with a vengeance. Nebraska was able to score four unanswered points coming out of a timeout to steal a 25-22 victory of their own in the match, moving the overall score to 2-2. Fayad assessed where things went awry for her and her teammates in their narrow fourth set defeat against the Huskers.

“We just missed out on a few opportunities in the moment that would’ve put us ahead and helped us win in that fourth set, but unfortunately when you let those opportunities go, teams like Nebraska or teams that are in the top two in the country, they take advantage of that,” Fayad said. 

In their fifth, and final chance to take down the Huskers, the Toreros fell short once again. USD was able to rally to tie the set at six after falling behind by two points early on, but was unable to get much closer. After continuing to trail by two in the late stages of the frame, they eventually suffered a 15-11 set defeat that clinched a 3-2 match win for the Huskers. 

After the match, Fayad mentioned that her team’s defeat may have been self-inflicted.

“I think our own errors (allowed Nebraska to pull away),” Fayad said. “They did everything by the book, and we could have stayed more true to our gameplan. If we would’ve done that, I think we would’ve come out with a win today. It was a tough one, but we’ll definitely learn from this experience.”

Petrie stated that despite the loss, there were positive aspects of the match for her team. 

“We’re really excited to be playing at the level that we are this early in the season,” Petrie said. “Having matches like that, it just helps to boost your confidence. Win or lose, you’re playing stiff competition, and you are learning a lot about yourself and your team and what you need to work on.”

Fayad shared her coach’s sentiment regarding confidence.

“It’s giving us confidence — the fact that we could have won given our own mistakes,” Fayad said.

Next up for the Toreros is a road matchup with the University of California, Santa Barbara on Friday, Sept. 13 at 6 p.m. According to Petrie, her team will be both well prepared and motivated for the match.

“I think that we’re finally settling into a pretty good lineup, and I think that everyone is hungry to get some wins,” Petrie said. “We’re gonna carry that up there.”

Live statistics for the match will be available on the USD volleyball website.