USD volleyball drops two of three on weekend

Tough non-conference schedule continues as Toreros beat Louisiana, but lose to USC and OSU

Anderson Haigler/Sports Editor/The USD Vista

The opponent awaiting USD in the Jenny Craig Pavilion was a familiar one. The Toreros (3-6) had tangled with the Trojans (8-3) before, most recently when they ended their 2017-2018 season with a five-set loss to the University of Southern California (USC) in the second round of the NCAA women’s volleyball tournament. The match, which marked the conclusion of a dominant season for then-ninth ranked USD, was a battle until the end, with each set being decided by four points or less, a testament to the depth and veteran experience the Toreros possessed on their roster. 

More than nine months later, the Toreros were set to take on USC once again, this time on USD’s home hardwood. 

As the match unfolded last Friday night, however, the contest took on a decidedly different tone than the postseason offering of last year. USD labored to keep things close, hanging with USC in the first and final sets, but ultimately could not keep up with the Trojans, suffering the loss in three consecutive sets by scores of 25-22, 25-15, and 25-20. At times, the Toreros struggled to keep up with USC, and USD’s relative inexperience and lack of success was a stark contrast to the high stakes affair of the team’s previous meeting.

The match began much like it would finish, with USD and USC trading the lead back and forth. Each time the Trojans pulled ahead early on in the first set, the Toreros answered, tying the score nine times throughout the course of the set, overcoming deficits as large as three points to do so. Senior Addie Picha, first-year Katie Lukes, and sophomore Roxie Wiblin each chipped two or more kills as part of the Toreros’ efforts. As would become a common thread throughout the match, however, USD simply couldn’t close things out. After leveling the score at 20, the Toreros allowed USC to pull away, eventually dropping the match by a score of 25-22.

The second set did not see the same level of competition from USD. After taking a 6-5 lead, the Trojans never looked back. Whatever fight USD had possessed in the first set appeared to be gone, which allowed USC to stretch their lead to 10 points, and maintain  their  advantage through the end of the second set on their way to an easy, 25-15 victory. USD’s defense, or lack thereof, may have been a factor in the defeat, as the Toreros registered just one block collectively in the second set. Many of the Trojans’ points stemmed from self-inflicted errors on the Toreros behalf. Several instances occurred of USD players mistakenly letting an USC attack drop to the floor in hopes of it landing out of bounds, only to have the ball land within the lines. 

When the Toreros emerged from the locker room following the second set and began the third, though, it appeared that they had made adjustments to better counter the Trojans. For the first time that  night, USD took the lead, beginning with a 5-3 advantage early on. First-year outside hitter Katie Lukes spoke about her team’s mid-match adjustments following the conclusion of the contest.

“I think that from the beginning we came out with a different energy, way different energy,” Lukes said. “We were just mad at our play, so to come out and play like we wanted to beat them, that totally shifted the tone of the game.”

USD women’s volleyball head coach Jennifer Petrie gave her perspective on her team’s temporary momentum shift.

“We changed a few key players, we gave some other people some opportunities,” Petrie said. “Roxie Wiblin was really hot for us offensively so we put her in a little more of an opportunity to get some swings. We changed the lineup a little bit, who was playing where, to see what kind of production we could get at the end.”

Their lead, however, was both slim and short lived. Though the Toreros appeared to be playing better, and closer to the level of their opponent, they were once again unable to maintain their lead down the stretch. USD went on to relinquish their advantage at the 20 point mark, eventually losing by a score of 25-20 despite five kills from Lukes and four from Wiblin.

Lukes, who led the Toreros with ten total kills, assessed her team’s overall performance on the night.

“I mean, we fought, but we just have to execute at the end,” Lukes said. “And that’s what we need to work on in practice this week. Just being able to put the ball away at the end and taking care of the little plays and being super disciplined — that’s what we missed out on.”

The defeat illuminated what has become a common theme for the Toreros this season: growing pains. Gone are USD’s four seniors of last season — former West Coast Conference (WCC) Player of the Year Kristen Gengenbacher and All-WCC right side hitter Jayden Kennedy among them. Petrie described her roster as “young,” as just three of the Toreros’ 19 players are seniors, and this assessment has become increasingly notable as the season progresses for USD. Talent on the roster remains  — first year Katie Lukes, sophomore Roxie Wiblin, and seniors Addie Picha and Lauren Fuller are testaments to that, among other talent on the Torero depth chart.

However, the Toreros’ rocky start against a myriad of ranked opponents (four out of nine total games) may have shown that USD’s current youthful roster may need a bit of additional seasoning before it can ascend to the levels of success attained in years past.

Petrie addressed her team’s early-season struggles.

“Our team is really working hard to find a groove,” Petrie said. “We’ve got so many new players and I’m really proud of the way they’re coming out and battling every night and competing and trying to learn, but we’ve got so much youth and we’re playing some of the best teams in the country.”

Like Petrie said, USD’s development as a team and the hurdles associated with it has been more glaring as they take on a high level of competition. According to Petrie, though, their schedule is difficult by design, and she sees value in going head to head with the best in the nation.

“We could’ve had a really easy schedule and had a lot more wins, but at the end of the day if you want to be one of the best in the country you have to play them,” Petrie said. “(In the top 25) is where we want to be, and that’s where we train to be. No matter who we put on the court, that’s our expectation of training and being at that level. It’s an opportunity (for the Toreros) to gauge themselves and see what they have to get better at. Right now we’re trying to take the lessons within the game itself. Sometimes the results aren’t what we are hoping for, but there’s a lot to be learned from playing these types of opponents.”

After the loss, which was part of the annual SDSU/USD Challenge, the Toreros played two more matches, one early Saturday morning against the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, and another later that afternoon against Oregon State University. The Toreros won the first match against the Ragin Cajuns in straight sets behind 10 kills each from Picha, junior Megan Jacobsen, and Fuller, but dropped their matinee offering to the Beavers, 2-3. Though they rallied from a 2-1 set deficit to force a fifth set, double digit kills from Fuller, Picha, Wiblin, and Lukes paired with 44 assists from junior Hannah Newsome weren’t enough for the Toreros to complete their comeback, leaving USD with a 1-2 record on the weekend.

The remainder of USD’s schedule is comprised completely of WCC games. Petrie said that her team is well prepared as they head into conference play.

“I think that going into conference, (the Toreros) are going to feel really confident, because they’ve had that match play to rely on,” Petrie said.

USD takes on the Saint Mary’s University Gaels at 7 p.m. this Thursday in the Jenny Craig Pavilion to begin West Coast Conference play.