SAN DIEGO—No. 20 San Diego defeated Loyola Marymount 3-1 to claim its first outright WCC Championship since 2013.
 
After dropping the first set, the Toreros (24-5, 17-1 WCC) took the next three straight sets to top the Lions, 21-25, 25-15, 25-18, 25-20, on Tuesday evening in the Jenny Craig Pavilion to close out the regular season.
 
Four Toreros reached double-digit kills and USD hit .296 as a team against the Lions (15-15, 9-9 WCC). San Diego was led by Katie Lukes and Grace Frohling who each collected 12 kills. Lauren Turner and Thana Fayad added 10 kills apiece, while Megan Jacobsen chipped in nine.
 
Fayad registered her ninth double-double of the season, finishing second on the team with 15 digs. Annie Benbow led the Toreros in the back court, tallying 17 digs, while Anna Newsome and Camryn Tastad added nine each.
 
 Newsome collected 47 assists in the match and added five kills on seven errorless swings to hit .714. Newsome was also one of six Toreros to register an ace in the match. USD was led by Frohling and Fayad who collected two aces each.
 
USD collected nine blocks in the match, led by Turner with six total blocks, including three solo stops. Fayad and Jacobsen added three blocks each for the Toreros.
 
San Diego took an early 8-5 lead in the first set before the Lions went on an 8-2 run to take the lead. USD rallied late to pull within two points, but the Toreros could not close out the set. Turner collected five of her 10 kills, hitting at a .571 clip, however USD was limited to a match-low .194 hitting percentage.
 
The Torero offense found its rhythm in the second set, hitting .314. After falling behind early, 3-4, the Toreros outscored the Lions 19-5 to take a commanding lead, 21-9. Lukes collected six kills in the set and Frohling added four to propel USD to a second-set victory to tie the match at one set apiece.
 
It was more of the same for USD in the third set. The teams traded points early before USD created separation with an 8-0 run to lead 21-11. LMU fought off five set points before Frohling put down her eighth kill to give USD the 2-1 match lead.
 
It was a back-and-forth battle in the fourth frame, with the set tied as late as 18-18. San Diego put together a 9-2 run sparked by back-to-back kills from Turner to close out the set and the match.
 
With the automatic bid secured, the Toreros will find out their post-season path on Sunday, Dec. 1 during the NCAA DI women's volleyball selection show. The 2019 bracket will be announced at 5:30 p.m. PT on ESPNU.