Volleyball sweeps weekend

Toreros take down rival SDSU, as well as LBSU, and USC in weekend tournament

Chris Spiering / Sports Editor / The USD Vista

The University of San Diego women’s volleyball team hosted their second invitational tournament of the season this past weekend. On Thursday night, the Toreros defeated No. 20 University of Southern California (USC) in a thrilling five-set match. On Friday night, USD hosted their crosstown rival San Diego State University (SDSU) and won in three straight sets. And on Saturday night, the Toreros defeated Long Beach State University in three sets as well. 

It was a productive and successful weekend for the Toreros. Their win over USC marked their first victory over a ranked opponent this season.   First year opposite setter Grace Frohling tied her career high with 17 kills that helped lead USD to the victory over the Trojans. Frohling racked up a .464 hitting percentage, including going a perfect 3-3 in the deciding fifth set. Frohling has been a big part of the early success for the Toreros.

“To have a freshman be able to step in and carry that much of the offense, we are so thrilled,” USD women’s volleyball head coach Jennifer Petrie said. “She has played well against some of the top teams in the country. As a freshman, her future is going to be outstanding.” 

Thursday night was also a career night for sophomore libero Annie Benbow. She earned her first career double-double with a career high in digs (18) and assists (10). Senior setter Anna Newsome tallied her third double-double of the season with 42 assists and 15 digs.

The opening set of the match was even for the most part, as there were a combined seven ties, but the Toreros pulled away and took the first set 25-18. The second set was similar as USC held their ground early on, but USD did not let up and won 25-17. 

Both teams were battling in the third set as USC was on the verge of being swept. They Trojans rallied for a 9-2 run and won by the score of  25-19. The fourth set was more of the same as the Trojans won 25-18. 

The Toreros refused to be denied in the fifth set as they led the entire time. The Trojans’ last  serve sailed too long and USD won 15-13 and took the match three sets to two. The Toreros were lighting up the backcourt with 61 total digs to the Trojans’ 43. 

Friday night, the Toreros carried their momentum from Thursday night’s win and hit .323 in the match with seven aces and six team blocks as they defeated their rivals, SDSU. This was their fifth sweep of the season. 

The Toreros were strong on defense, not allowing the Aztecs to hit the ball well. USD limited the Aztecs to a .124 hitting percentage. The Toreros’ serving was on point all night, and it seemed to be too tough for the Aztecs. USD collected seven aces, while SDSU had zero aces as the Aztecs committed eight service errors. 

Newsome and sophomore setter Laura Madill split the setting duties. Newsome finished with 22 assists, seven digs, one kill, and one ace, while Madill added 16 assists and two digs. 

The Toreros were hot from the opening set. USD had an early five-point run that included three aces by Frohling. Frohling had a thrilling four aces in that first set while finishing the night with eight kills, four aces, and two blocks. 

USD held the Aztecs to a low .067 hitting percentage. The Toreros kept SDSU out of rhythm all night. 

“It was really important for us to not only start off well, but to finish well,” Petrie said. “I think in some of the previous matches we’ve played, we’ve had some good stretches but we haven’t put together a complete match and tonight they absolutely did that.”

Both teams traded points in the third set, but USD pulled away as the Aztecs committed back-to-back hitting errors. Outside hitters Katie Lukes, sophomore, and Thana Fayad, senior, recorded five kills apiece to seal the 25-20 victory. Lukes finished the night with 13 kills and one block, while Fayad finished with 10 kills and one block. Senior middle blocker Megan Jacobsen contributed with six kills and three blocks on the night. 

Last year the Toreros didn’t perform as well as they would have hoped against SDSU.

 “It was really exciting to play SDSU because last year we lost to them at their place,” Newsome said. “So we wanted revenge and we were very hungry.” 

No matter the sport, beating SDSU is always exciting for both the Torero players and fans. 

“Anytime any sport plays, the rivalry is strong and great and both teams want to dominate each other,” Petrie said. “We’re thrilled to have won this one and to be at home, I think our fans did a fantastic job creating a good home court environment for us.”

The Bull Pit was electric all night, energizing the team with their chants.

Saturday night was the final game of the tournament as USD hosted Long Beach State. It was a block party for the Toreros as they finished the match with a season-high 15 team blocks. San Diego defeated the Beach in three straight sets, marking their second sweep of the weekend and sixth of the season. 

Three separate Toreros finished the match with at least five blocks apiece and two finished with three apiece. Fayad led the Toreros with nine digs in the backcourt. Benbow finished with eight and senior libero Payton Douglass finished with seven. 

It was all Toreros in the first set as they jumped out to an early 7-2 advantage. USD went on a nine-point run midway through the set that made the score 18-4. Long Beach struggled to get their offense going as they committed 10 hitting errors while the Toreros only committed three. 

Long Beach wouldn’t give up as they came out of the intermission holding an early 5-3 lead in the third set. But it wasn’t enough as the Toreros put together a 7-1 run to retake the lead 10-6. However, the Beach didn’t go down without a fight. They had brought the score back to 12-12 even. Both teams were trading points down the stretch with the game tied 23-23. The Toreros ended the night with a block to seal the 25-23 third set victory and took the match 3-0. It was a successful weekend for the Toreros as they improved their record to 7-4 on the season. 

USD will begin West Coast  Conference play on the road as they travel to the University of Portland on Thursday, Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. and Gonzaga University on Saturday, Sept. 28 at 12 p.m. 

Their next home game is against Pepperdine University on Tuesday, Oct. 1 at 7 p.m. in the Jenny Craig Pavilion.