SPOKANE, Wash. — A .505 team hitting percentage powered No. 4 San Diego volleyball (12-1, 3-0 WCC) to its ninth consecutive victory on Thursday night, an efficient 3-0 sweep over Gonzaga (3-11, 0-4 WCC) that elapsed just 1:17 and marked USD's quickest decision of 2022.

The Toreros won the first two sets by identical 25-18 margins, then closed things out with a 25-15 win in the third to earn their seventh sweep of the season.

Katie Lukes led the way for San Diego with a match-high 15 kills, and every USD player with a kill attempt hit .368 or better.

HOW IT HAPPENED

First Set - No. 4 San Diego, 25-18

• Gonzaga came out of the gates hot, scoring three straight points on two kills and a service ace to open the match and take a 3-0 lead.
• The Bulldogs maintained their slim advantage throughout the early stages of the first frame, staying ahead until an attack error from the Zags evened the score at nine.
• Back-and-forth play led to three more ties at 11, 12, and 13 before San Diego pulled ahead for good on a Gonzaga service error that made it 14-13 in favor of USD.
• Lukes (redshirt senior outside hitter) then began building on her team's newfound advantage, hammering home a kill to make it 15-13 and force a Bulldog timeout.
• The break in the action did little to slow San Diego's momentum. USD expanded its lead to as many as five on three occasions down the stretch, doing so with a combo block from sophomore middle blocker Haylee Stoner (Mission Hills High School) and graduate transfer setter Gabby Blossom (Penn State), a service error from the Zags, and a kill from graduate transfer outside hitter Breana Edwards (Indiana).
• Edwards' kill made it 21-16, setting the stage for a solo block from Blackwell to make it 22-16 that preceded a quick 3-2 run from the Toreros to finish it.
• Blackwell hammered two kills to take things to match point, then Edwards brought it home, locking in a 25-18 win for USD in Thursday night's first set to push her team ahead 1-0 in the match against Gonzaga.

First Set Notables:

• Edwards and Lukes: Four kills apiece while both hitting .500
• Blossom: 13 assists, two block assists, and two digs
• Stoner: Two block assists
• Blackwell: One block assist and one solo block

Second Set - No. 4 San Diego, 25-18

• Thursday's second set began with back-and-forth play, with Gonzaga jumping ahead 3-1 on two kills and a service ace before the Toreros reined in the Bulldogs and tied it at three on a kill from Blossom.
• A San Diego service error pushed the Zags back ahead at 5-4, then Stoner found her mark with a kill to knot the set at five.
• Back-to-back kills from Blackwell followed to put USD back ahead at 7-5 before another USD service error and a Gonzaga combo block tied things once again, this time at seven.
• The Bulldogs forged ahead to carve out a 9-7 advantage, but it was short-lived.
• Edwards smashed a kill to bring her team back within one, then a solo block from senior opposite/setter Grace Frohling evened the score at nine.
• A bad San Diego set gave Gonzaga one final lead at 10-9 before Frohling tied it again with a kill.
• USD proceeded to jump back in front on an attack error from the Zags and didn't trail again, steadily building a late lead with a well-rounded effort that was highlighted by service aces from Frohling and junior outside hitter Kylie Pries.
• Lukes earned the Toreros their largest lead of the set at 23-16 with a kill to force a Bulldog timeout.
• San Diego made quick work of the Zags out of the break, closing out another 25-18 decision in the second with an Edwards kill and a Gonzaga attack error to pull ahead 2-0 in the match.

Second Set Notables:

• Lukes: Five kills (.714), one dig, and one block assist
• Blossom: 15 assists, a dig, and a block assist
• Frohling: Three kills, an assist, a service ace, two digs, and a solo block
• Stoner and Blackwell: One block assist apiece

Third Set - No. 4 San Diego, 25-15

• The Toreros wasted no time getting things started in Thursday's third and final frame, racing to a 4-0 lead on two kills from Blackwell, a kill from Frohling, and a service ace from junior libero/defensive specialist Madi Allen (Great Oak High School).
• San Diego, which never trailed in the set, ran that lead out to as many as six as the frame progressed, eventually pushing its advantage to seven at 21-14 on a Blackwell kill that forced a last-chance Gonzaga timeout.
• The Toreros acted swiftly to end the match out of the break, ripping off a 4-1 run to seal a 25-15 win in the set and a 3-0 sweep over the Bulldogs in the match via a Gonzaga attack error and kills from Lukes, Frohling, and Stoner.

Third Set Notables:

• Blackwell: Seven kills (.875), one dig, and one block assist
• Lukes: Six kills (.455) and one block assist
• Stoner: Four kills (1.000) and one dig
• Blossom: 20 assists and two digs
• Redshirt senior libero Annie Benbow: Four digs and one assist

TORERO TIDBITS

• Lukes paced the match with 15 kills while hitting a robust .542, making her one of four Toreros to hit above .500 in the match as she added five digs and three block assists.
• She was followed by Blackwell with 11 (.556), who also chipped in a dig, a solo block, and three block assists.
• Frohling and Edwards were next with nine kills apiece while hitting .389 and .368, respectively.
• Frohling also contributed an assist, a team-high two service aces, five digs, and a solo block.
• Stoner had eight digs while hitting .727, chipping in three digs and three block assists along the way.
• Blossom totaled a match-high 48 assists alongside five digs, three block assists, and a kill.
• She has recorded 30 assists or more in each of USD's first 13 games this season to begin her San Diego career.
• Pries and Allen both had a single service ace.
• Benbow notched six digs on Thursday night to give her 1,337 for her USD career, which marks the fifth most in San Diego volleyball history.
• She passed LaManda Mounts (1994-97), who previously held the fifth-most digs in San Diego history with 1,334.
• With 153 more she will overtake Hunter Jennings (2013-2016), the Toreros' all-time digs leader with 1,489.
• The Toreros out-hit the Bulldogs .505 to .182 on Thursday night and out-blocked Gonzaga eight to two.
• Thursday night's win over Gonzaga (1:17) was USD's shortest match of 2022, coming in just under the Toreros' one hour and 19 minute sweep of UConn at the Jenny Craig Pavilion on September 9.
• San Diego has now won 54 straight matches against Gonzaga and is 60-9 (.869) against the Bulldogs all-time.
• USD has swept seven of its 13 matches in 2022 and has won nine straight, a stretch that dates back to September 3rd's 3-0 win over No. 8 Louisville at the Cardinal Classic.

UP NEXT

The Toreros remain on the road this weekend as they continue WCC play against Portland. First serve against the Pilots on Saturday at the Chiles Center is set for 1:00 p.m.