LOS ANGELES — San Diego volleyball (3-4, 0-0 WCC) on Saturday evening utilized an explosive performance from Amber Stivrins to secure its third consecutive victory, hanging on for a 3-2 win over UC Davis (3-4, 0-0 Big West) at the Galen Center as part of the Trojan Invitational behind a season-high 21 kills from the graduate transfer.

The Toreros took the first set by a dominant 25-10 margin before dropping the second set 25-19. USD returned the favor with a 25-19 win of their own in the third, but allowed the Aggies to extend the match when they won the fourth by a score of 25-20. Timely scores from Isadora Tercariol and Kylie Pries down the stretch put the fifth set out of reach, earning San Diego a match-clinching 15-9 decision in the final frame.

USD out-hit UC Davis .282 to .187 in the match and out-blocked the Aggies 13-7.

HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set - San Diego, 25-10

• A service ace from Stivrins capped an early San Diego surge as the match got underway, giving USD a 3-1 lead.
• UC Davis hung tough through the middle stages of the set before USD began to stretch its advantage and jumped ahead by a 17-7 margin on another service ace, this time from Isadora Tercariol.
• USD finished the frame on a 5-2 run, pulling ahead 1-0 in the match after Haylee Stoner hammered a kill home to earn her team a 25-10 victory in set one.

Second Set - UC Davis, 25-19

• San Diego began the set with another 3-1 run and led until the frame's midpoint, which saw the Aggies tie it at 13 on a service ace.
• UC Davis followed with a kill to take a 14-13 lead it did not relinquish.
• The Aggies' lead extended to eight at 24-16 before the Toreros began to regain ground, but it was too little, too late.
• Despite three straight kills down the stretch to stave off set point (one from Stoner and back-to-back strikes from Stivrins), UC Davis took the second set by a 25-19 margin to tie the match at 1-1.

Third Set - San Diego, 25-19

• A kill apiece from Blackwell and Stivrins paired with both a UC Davis attack and service error helped the Toreros open up Saturday's third set on a 4-1 run.
• The Aggies rallied to tie the score at 12 on a kill of their own before a UC Davis attack error and an Olivia Bennett Service ace re-established the USD lead at 14-12.
• UC Davis tied it again at 19-19 but USD seized control of the set with a 6-0 run to secure itself a 2-1 lead in the match.

Fourth Set - UC Davis, 25-20

• An early service ace helped UC Davis establish a 5-3 advantage to begin the fourth before Pries knotted the score at 6-6 with a kill.
• The two teams traded points up to the midpoint of the set, which saw the Aggies create a 16-12 lead on a service ace.
• Stivrins staved off set point with a late kill to pull her team within four but USD got no closer, falling by a score of 25-20 to send the match to a decisive fifth set.

Fifth Set - San Diego, 15-9

• The Toreros jumped out to yet another 3-1 advantage to begin Saturday night's fifth and final set, but UC Davis recovered and pulled back within one to make it 7-6.
• Back-to-back attack errors from the Aggies paired with a service ace from Tercariol helped USD create distance down the stretch, moving the score to 10-6 in the Toreros' favor.
• A combo block from Stivrins and Blackwell then pushed the San Diego lead to five, forcing a UC Davis timeout.
• The Aggies scored back-to-back points out of the break before Blackwell restored order with a kill of her own, keying off a late 3-0 run that featured two consecutive combo blocks from her and Annika Hester.
• UC Davis scored one last time to pull within five at 14-9 but got no closer, falling in five sets to San Diego after Pries sealed San Diego's gritty five-set victory with a well-timed kill.

TORERO TIDBITS

• Stivrins hit at a remarkable .514 clip as she paced the USD offense with 21 kills, which marked the most that any Torero has recorded in a single match so far this season. She also added seven digs, a service ace, an assist, and a block assist.
• Blackwell was next with 13 kills of her own, outdoing Stivrins with a dominant .579 hitting percentage.
• Blackwell  also led the match with a season-high 10 blocks (one solo), the most in a single match by any Torero so far this season.
• Tercariol tallied a match-high 42 assists, nine digs, and three service aces, which were tied for the match high.
• Madi Allen added 11 digs, four assists, and a kill.
• Saturday evening's 3-2 win over UC Davis was San Diego's first five-set match of 2023.

UP NEXT
The Toreros are set to conclude play in the Trojan Invitational tomorrow afternoon with a matchup against host USC. First serve at Galen Center is set for 2 p.m.