No. 14 Trojans Battle No. 17 Bruins to Open Pac-12 Play

LOS ANGELES – The 14th-ranked USC women's volleyball team (8-3) opens its Pac-12 schedule with a crosstown rivalry match against No. 17 UCLA (5-2) on Wednesday, Sept. 19, at Galen Center. The Women of Troy and the Bruins meet for the 111th time and will be shown live on ESPNU at 8 p.m. PT. USC has won each of its last three matches and is 32-10 all-time in league openers, which includes a thrilling five-set win over the Bruins to open last year's Pac-12 slate. The Trojans are 3-0 at Galen Center but have not played there since the season's opening weekend. USC is 154-32 at Galen Center since the arena opened in 2006. UCLA is the seventh ranked opponent that the Women of Troy will face this season. USC has four wins over ranked foes.

MATCH #12
No. 14 USC (8-3) vs. No. 17 UCLA (5-2)
Wednesday, Sept. 19 • 8 p.m. PT
Galen Center • Los Angeles, Calif.
SERIES RECORD: USC leads, 57-53 (.518)
LAST MEETING: L, 3-0 (Nov. 25, 2017 • Galen Center)
CURRENT STREAK: Lost 1 • LAST 10 MEETINGS: 4-6
STREAM: WatchESPN.com
TV: ESPNU (Paul Sunderland & Holly McPeak)
OPPONENT WEBSITE: UCLABruins.com

MATCH #13
No. 14 USC (8-3) at Colorado (8-3)
Sunday, Sept. 23 • 12 p.m. PT
Coors Events Center • Boulder, Colo.
SERIES RECORD: USC leads, 15-1 (.938)
LAST MEETING: W, 3-2 (Nov. 11, 2017 • Galen Center)
CURRENT STREAK: Won 1 • LAST 10 MEETINGS: 9-1
STREAM: Pac-12.com/live
TV: Pac-12 LA/M (TBA)
OPPONENT WEBSITE: CUBuffs.com

FIRST SERVE

USC and UCLA meet for the 111th time.
The Women of Troy are 32-10 all-time in conference openers.
The Trojans are 154-32 (.828) at the Galen Center and are 3-0 this season.
USC coaches are 3-2 in their first-time meetings with crosstown rival UCLA. Wins by Chuck Erbe, Dale Flickenger, and Mick Haley. Losses by Lisa Love and Jerritt Eliott (interim head coach).
The Trojans' 8-3 record in non-conference contests matches their record in non-league matches a season go.
UCLA is the seventh ranked opponent the Trojans will face this season.
USC's meeting with Colorado in Boulder will be the teams' only match-up this season. In the same way, the Trojans will play Utah at home but not make the trip to Salt Lake City.
USC is led by So. OH Brooke Botkin (4.43 kps) and Jr. All-American OH Khalia Lanier (4.10 kps). Fr. setter Raquel Lázaro (11.21 aps) runs the Trojan offense. Sr. libero Victoria Garrick (4.76 dps) anchors the defense.

BUT FIRST, LET ME TAKE A #SELFIE: Get social with the Women of Troy! Fans can follow and interact with the USC women's volleyball team on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram by searching for @USCWomensVolley.

USC IN BRIEF: The Women of Troy completed one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the nation with an 8-3 record and earned wins over No. 4 Florida and No. 5 Kentucky. The Trojans fell to No. 3 BYU (currently undefeated and ranked No. 1) and also claimed victories over No. 13 Creighton and No. 23 San Diego. Under first-year head coach Brent Crouch, USC boasts a formidable offense with All-American OH Khalia Lanier leading the charge (4.10 kps). She is joined on the pins by sophomore standout Brooke Botkin (4.43 kps) and junior transfer Emily Baptista (2.62 kps). Freshman setter Raquel Lázaro earned back-to-back Pac-12 Freshman of the Week honors in her first two weekends and is second in the league in total assists (471). On defense, the Women of Troy turn to senior libero Victoria Garrick (4.76 dps); one of just 17 Trojans ever to collect over 1,000 career digs. In the middle, transfer Jasmine Gross ranks second in the Pac-12 with 1.36 blocks per set.

LAST TIME OUT: USC scored a pair of 3-0 sweeps at the SDSU/USD Challenge with wins over Louisiana and host No. 23-ranked San Diego. The two victories extended the Trojans to a three-match winning streak. Brooke Botkin had her fifth double-double of the season in a win over the Ragin' Cajuns. She put up 18 kills and 12 digs while Raquel Lázaro dished out 45 assists and had 13 digs. Khalia Lanier led the Women of Troy with 19 kills and two service aces. In a statement win over the Toreros, Lanier posted 15 kills in just three frames and added five digs, two blocks, and another ace. Madison Murtagh had five kills and led the Trojans with six blocks. As a team, USC put up 11.0 blocks in the win against USD.

AGREE TO DISAGREE: The Women of Troy lead the all-time series with rival UCLA by a 57-53 margin. Ask someone in blue and gold and they'll tell you otherwise. The Bruins claim to lead the series with a record of 64-56. UCLA's program, which started in 1972, is several years the senior to the one at USC (1976) and earned a handful of victories over the Trojans before the Women of Troy officially started a varsity program. In those four seasons, the Bruins racked up 11 wins against USC's club team, which are included in UCLA's all-time record.

AVCA POLL POSITION: The Trojans opened 2018 ranked No. 10 after finishing the 2017 campaign in the No. 7 spot. Overall, the Trojans have appeared in the poll 501 times and have held a spot among the poll's top 10 teams 316 times, which ranks seventh all-time. The Trojans have also held the No. 1 ranking 47 times previously, which is sixth all-time.

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Players Mentioned

Emily Baptista

Brooke Botkin

Victoria Garrick

Jasmine Gross

Khalia Lanier

Madison Murtagh