NCAA Tournament preview

No. 20 USD will travel to Honolulu, Hawaii to take on No. 25 WSU in the first round

Anderson Haigler / Associate Editor / The USD Vista

Ask nearly any college sports team what their collective goal is for the season, and they’re likely to tell you that they want to play in the postseason. A college basketball player would probably say they aspire to play in March Madness Tournament, a college baseball player — a berth to Omaha, and a football player might have ambitions of playing in a playoff or bowl game. 

The University of San Diego women’s volleyball team, however, has different expectations for themselves. At the beginning of the season, they set their sights on not only a spot in the NCAA Tournament, but a deep run through the bracket. And when the Toreros take aim at that goal, they mean it. Every season of the last decade, USD has gathered in the Warren Room in the Jenny Craig Pavilion to see where their name would pop up on the bracket, and this December was no exception. 

Fresh off a Sweet 16 appearance last year, the Toreros raced to a 24-5 (17-1 West Coast Conference) record this season that saw them win their 11th WCC Championship in program history; their fifth in the last 10 seasons. And that commanding campaign earned them an automatic qualifier to the tournament, setting them up to take on No. 25 Washington State University (23-9) in the first round — something the Toreros have come to expect of themselves. 

“With this history of this program, it’s expected,” senior libero Payton Douglass said. “It is exciting…but we never expect our season to come to a halt after conference.”

That’s not to say the significance of making the tournament in itself is lost on USD, however. 

“It’s always a great point in the season,” USD volleyball head coach Jennifer Petrie said on Monday. “It’s certainly one of our longstanding goals, and whenever you achieve that, it’s pretty exhilarating. There’s a lot of anticipation to see where you’re going to get sent, and this was no different.” 

But in talking about the tournament, it wasn’t the excitement, or hype, or pomp and circumstance of the selection show or postseason that the Toreros focused on. Rather, San Diego emphasized how they feel that this season, they are better equipped to make a splash in the tournament than they have in a long time. 

“We always plan to have a long journey through the NCAA tournament,” Douglass said. “Just like every other year, we’re expecting to go further than we ever have in program history.”

Senior outside hitter Thana Fayad, who leads the Toreros with 280 kills so far this season, elaborated on Douglass’ sentiment.

“It’s exciting to see our potential as a team this year specifically,” Fayad said. “Last year we made it to the Sweet 16. (This year) we anticipate to be able to go further, and to work hard enough to go further.”

It’s easy to see why they have so much confidence in themselves. The regular-season effort that preceded the Toreros’ postseason selection was an impressive one, seeing them win the outright WCC title for the first time since 2013, and finish the year ranked No. 20 nationally. After avenging last year’s loss to then No. 20 USC in non conference, they breezed through conference play, falling only to Pepperdine and beating top-ten ranked BYU both on the road and at home, the latter of which being an electric win in the Jenny Craig Pavilion. 

This dominant campaign culminated in a flurry of awards on Monday afternoon as the WCC announced their regular-season honors. Senior Anna Newsome was named Setter of the Year. Opposite Grace Frohling was named Freshman of the Year. Jennifer Petrie took home Coach of the Year. All of this alongside Newsome, Frohling, Fayad and senior middle blocker Megan Jacobsen earning All-WCC first-team selections. The wealth of accolades the Toreros earned point not only to the pure talent on their roster, but their ability to play cohesively as a team. Blending both youth in first-year standout Frohling and experience in senior players like Newsome, Jacobsen, Fayad, and Douglass, USD has clicked at the right time, hitting their collective strides late in the season. 

“I feel like they’ve just gotten better and better as the season has progressed,” Petrie said. “A lot more confident, it’s a very well-rounded team.”

Fayad agreed with her coach’s assessment. 

“We don’t just rely on seniors,” Fayad said. “We rely on everybody on the court, and everybody on the sideline.”

And now, with all of this under their belts, the Toreros will begin the postseason where they started this year: at the Stan Sheriff Center at the University of Hawaii, a 10,300-seat venue where USD went 1-2 in the Hawaiian Airlines Rainbow Wahine Classic this August. San Diego fell to Hawaii (2-3) and No. 13 Washington (1-3) before sweeping St. John’s (3-0) in the round-robin tournament. 

“I love that gym,” Fayad said. “It’s awesome — even if the crowd is cheering for Hawaii. In this case we probably won’t have as big of a crowd because it’s Washington and USD, but it’s exciting to play on that court.”

“They love volleyball,” Douglass added, regarding the fans in Hawaii. 

The opponent awaiting the Toreros on the island, however, won’t be nearly as familiar. USD hasn’t played the WSU Cougars since 2008, and are 0-3 against them all time. 

“(They have) strong middles,” Petrie said of her team’s upcoming opponent. “They’re very young, a lot of freshmen on the team, a freshman setter. Obviously they play in a tough conference and have played a lot of good teams. But I think that it’s a good opening-round match for us.”

Either way, San Diego will come into the match focused, and ready to go.

“(The Toreros) have an axe to grind,” Petrie said. “They want to get out there and take care of business, make history for this program, a new legacy.”

Though the Toreros’ first-round matchup will take place in the sunny, tropical destination of Honolulu, a location perhaps much more favorable or desirable than other places within the bracket, USD doesn’t figure to get in too much time on the beach, nor do they see it as much of a vacation. 

“No beach days,” Fayad said. “It’s a business trip,” Douglass added.