CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – A remarkable postseason run came to a close Friday afternoon as San Diego dropped a 3-0 decision against No. 8 [6] Wisconsin in the NCAA Tournament Third Round at George Huff Hall.
The Toreros (18-13) could not keep pace with the Badgers (25-6) prolific offensive attack that hit .515 on the day to power a 25-13, 25-16, 25-10 result. USD struggled offensively as Wisconsin racked up 15 blocks and the Toreros hit .045 on the match.
Addie Picha led USD with a .556 hitting percentage and two blocks.
Katie Lukes paced the Toreros with seven kills, while
Roxie Wiblin and
Lauren Fuller added four apiece.
Anna Newsome provided a team-high 16 assists.
USD could not slow down Wisconsin's Dana Rettke who registered a match-high nine kills and hit .692 on the day. Tionna Williams led the Badgers defensive effort with 10 blocks.
It was a tough day all around for the Toreros which played without starting libero,
Kelli Barry, who suffered an injury during practice on Thursday. Then, USD lost senior,
Lauren Fuller, to injury early in the third set when she landed awkwardly after an attack attempt.
Despite the defeat, the Toreros have a lot to be proud of after making their fourth NCAA Tournament Third Round appearance in program history and defeating USC for the first time in the postseason after seven previous tries.
USD played one of the nation's toughest nonconference schedules and finished among the top three in the West Coast Conference for the 15th straight season. The future remains bright for the Toreros which expect to return 13 letterwinners next season.
The defeat concludes the careers of USD seniors, Picha, Fuller and
Kaity Edwards. The trio helped USD produce an 89-34 overall record over the past four seasons, a WCC championship in 2017 and four straight NCAA Tournament appearances, including three trips to the second round and one to the Sweet 16.
Illinois started the match hot and hit .500 in the first set to win, 25-13. The Toreros were held to a hitting percentage of .120 and did not help their own cause by committing five receiving errors. Trailing 18-11, USD won two straight points to cut deficit to 18-13. That's all USD would get, however, as the Badgers closed the set on a 7-0 run.
USD led 10-9 in the second set but the turning point came when Wisconsin reeled off a 6-2 run to take a 15-11 lead. The Toreros took timeout but Wisconsin continued its momentum and closed on a 10-5 run, to win 25-16.
The Toreros were faced with more adversity in the third set when they lost Fuller to injury after she landed awkwardly after an attack attempt at the net. USD was trailing 11-5 at the time and could not rebound after the injury. Wisconsin closed on a 14-5 run, which included a 7-0 stretch at one point, to seal the 3-0 decision.
