USC Women's Volleyball Tops Utah in Five to Extend Streak to Eight Wins

Friday, September 29

Los Angeles, Calif.

7:00 PM

USC

9-4,3-0Pac-12

Utah

6-7,1-2Pac-12

Utah

Southern California

Photo by: Katie Chin

USC Women's Volleyball Tops Utah in Five to Extend Streak to Eight Wins

September 29, 2023 | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Box Score Highlights

The Trojans won their eighth straight match and remained undefeated at home this season

LOS ANGELES – The USC women's volleyball team (9-4, 3-0 Pac-12) took down Utah (6-7, 1-2) in five sets (16-25, 25-17, 18-25, 25-16, 15-6) at Galen Center on Friday, Sept. 29, to extend its win streak to eight consecutive matches; the team's longest since 2016.

KEY PLAYERS

Sr. OH Skylar Fields led all players with 19 kills on 50 swings (6e) and hit .260 to go with nine digs and two blocks.
Jr. S Mia Tuaniga posted 40 assists with four kills and two service aces.
So. LIB Gala Trubint racked up a season-high 22 digs for her 35th-career match in double-digit digs and her 11th-career match over the 20-dig mark.
Sr. MB Lindsey Miller had seven kills (3e, 16att, .250) and seven digs with two service aces and a block.
So. MB Tyrah Ariail logged nine kills (3e, 19att, .316) and led the Trojans with four blocks for 11.0 points.
Jr. OH Katelyn Smith played two and a half sets and finished with six kills (2e, 11att) on .364 hitting and had a service ace.
Gr. DS Ellie Snook had nine digs and three service aces.
So. OH Dani Thomas-Nathan started the match and finished with nine digs, five kills, and a pair of service aces.
For the Utes, Emrie Satuala had a team-high 10 kills (4e, 17att, .353) with five blocks. Lauren Jardine, Kamry Bailey, and Allie Olsen each added nine kills. Vanessa Ramirez led the Utah defense with 18 digs. Viktoria Wahlgren had a double-double with 37 assists and 12 digs.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Trojans reached double-digit aces for the third time this season and finished with 10 against the Utes. The Trojans also had a 56-46 edge in kills and went 55-43 in assists. Utah had more blocks, 8-5, and more digs, 64-62.
Utah pulled away for a 25-16 win in the opening set led by five kills from Bailey. Bailey also had a set-high eight digs for the Utes. Utah out-dug USC, 20-16, in the first and had three blocks to hold the Trojans to a .026 hitting percentage.
USC turned the tables and evened the match with a 25-17 win in the second set. Fields led with five kills on 14 swings and Trubint tallied six of her digs in set two. USC also added two aces and had two blocks to hit .206 to Utah's .125.
Both teams had 10 kills in the third, but the Utes hit .409 to outpace the Trojans' .032 to get a 25-18 win and take a 2-1 lead in the match. Fields added four more kills, but Jardine also had four and the Utes put up three more blocks.
After seven ties, the Trojans used a 7-0 run to take a 22-15 lead and finished off a 25-16 win on a 9-2 run. Smith had four kills in the fourth. Fields and Miller each added three apiece and the Trojans scored three aces and two blocks.
The Trojans forced the fifth-set side switch with an 8-3 lead and then walked away with the match on a 15-6 win. USC hit .750 in the fifth with 12 kills on 16 attempts without an error. The Trojans were perfect on sideout opportunities at 7-for-7 in set five and got four kills from Ariail, three from Fields, and two from Smith.

UP NEXT

The Women of Troy host Colorado (9-5, 1-2 Pac-12) on Sunday (Oct. 1) to open the month of October. The Trojans and The Buffs meet at 1 p.m. PT and will be shown live on a USC Live Stream. The first 300 fans through the doors will receive a special pair of pink socks.

MATCH NOTES

USC improved to 20-11 all-time against Utah and to 8-5 at home. The Trojans also go to 3-4 in five-setters with the Utes.
The Women of Troy improved to 5-0 at home this season and go to 198-54 (.786) at Galen Center all-time.
USC's eight-match win streak is its longest since 2016 when the Trojans won eight in a row from Sept. 2-16.
The Trojans go to 3-1 in five-set matches this season and improve to 149-104 all-time in five-setters with a 60-39 mark when they play five sets at home.

For more information on the USC women's volleyball team and a complete schedule and results, please visit USCTrojans.com/WVB. Fans of the Women of Troy can follow @USCWomensVolley on Facebook, X, and Instagram.