LOS ANGELES—No. 18 San Diego dropped its first match of the season, 3-2, at Loyola Marymount on Saturday evening in Gersten Pavilion.
 
The Toreros (11-1, 11-1 WCC) battled down to the wire 25-22, 22-25, 25-22, 21-25, 14-16 but could not close out the match against the Lions (5-7, 5-7 WCC). USD hit under .200 for the first time this season, finishing the match at .157.
 
USD was led by Roxie Wiblin who finished two kills shy of her career high with 18, adding nine digs, three blocks and three aces. Thana Fayad also tallied double-digit kills with 16, hitting at a .394 clip. Katie Lukes chipped in nine kills and tied for a team-best six blocks.
 
Defensively, the Toreros were led in the back-court by Annie Benbow who collected 19 digs and Alex Hoglund who recorded her first career double-double with 10 digs and 13 assists. Isadora Terçariol collected a team-high 25 assists and added nine digs as well.
 
The Toreros collected 14 team blocks in the contest, paced by Lukes, Gabby Goddard and Elly Schraeder who all finished with six blocks.
 
USD had its work cut out after falling behind early in the first set, 9-0. The Toreros trailed by as many as 10 before an 8-0 run with Terçariol at the service line gave USD a 22-20 advantage. San Diego outscored LMU, 17-5, in the second half of the set to complete a 25-22 comeback.
 
It was the Toreros who took the early advantage in the second set 15-10 before the Lions went on a run of their own, 9-3, to take the lead. Another quick three-point run gave LMU some breathing room and the Lions took the second frame, 25-22.
 
San Diego again jumped out in front to start, 9-3, to begin the third set. LMU came back to tie things at 12-12 and the teams traded runs to another 19-19 tie. A Lions service error and kills from Frohling and Fayad gave USD the 22-19 lead and the Toreros held on for a third-set victory, 25-22.
 
The Lions held a 11-6 lead in the fourth set before USD rallied with a 7-2 run to pull even at 13-all. LMU answered with a six-point run of its own to pull back in front. The Toreros rallied late to pull within two points, 21-23, but the Lions closed out the set 25-21 to for a deciding fifth game.
 
Wiblin began the deciding set with a five-point serving run that included three aces to give USD a 7-2 advantage. The Toreros extended their lead further at 10-3 with timely blocks from Schraeder, Goddard and Lukes. It looked as if San Diego had the victory secured easily, but the Lions outscored USD 9-1 to close out the set and the match.
 
The Toreros will return to the Jenny Craig Pavilion to host No. 15 BYU on Wednesday at 1 p.m. (PT) before traveling to Provo, Utah for a rematch with the Cougars on Saturday at 12 p.m. (PT).