LOS ANGELES — Amber Stivrins delivered a season-high 25 kills on Sunday evening but San Diego volleyball (3-5, 0-0 WCC) could not overcome a late surge from USC (4-4, 0-0 Pac-12), dropping a 3-1 decision to conclude play in the Trojan Invitational at Galen Center.

USC took the first set 25-20 before the Toreros rallied to tie the match at 1-1 with a hard-fought 26-24 win in the second. USC followed by winning back-to-back frames, prevailing by scores of 25-19 and 25-23 to secure the four-set victory.

Stivrins hit .271 as she totaled 20-plus kills for the second consecutive match. Four USD players recorded double-digit digs in the defeat, which ended a three-game San Diego win streak.

HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set - USC, 25-20

• Sunday's match began with a back-and-forth battle before a kill from Haylee Stoner gave USD a 12-11 lead.
• A San Diego service error and a USC kill then gave the Trojans a 13-12 advantage, and they didn't trail again.
• Stivrins found her mark to stave off set point at 24-20 but the Toreros got no closer, falling behind 1-0 in the match.

Second Set - San Diego 26-24

• Another kill from Stivrins and a combo block from Leyla Blackwell and Kylie Pries helped San Diego start Sunday's second set strong, earning USD an early 4-1 lead.
• Madi Allen then punctuated a 4-0 run with a service ace to move the score to 8-2 in the visitors' favor.
• USD kept the Trojans at bay through the set's middle stages, but USC rallied to tie it at 17-17 on an attack error.
• Three straight San Diego points followed, putting the Toreros up 20-17 after Stoner and Pries notched a combo block, Pries hammered a kill, and Stoner and Isadora Tercariol put together another combo block.
• A kill from Blackwell brought the frame to set point at 24-23, but USC responded with a kill to tie it at 24.
• Annika Hester came up big on back-to-back points to secure her team a 26-24 win, finding her mark with a kill before she teamed up with Stoner on a combo block to seal the second set and tie the match at 1-1.

Third Set - USC, 25-19

• The Trojans began the third set on a 7-1 run before Pries stopped the surge with a kill.
• A block assist from Blackwell and Maya Kitna brought USD back within five at 15-10 but USC continued to pull away as the set progressed, eventually stretching its lead to as many as 10.
• After Stivrins fended off set point with a kill to make it 24-19, the Trojans secured a 25-19 win in the frame with a kill of their own, pulling ahead 2-1 in the match.

Fourth Set - USC, 25-23

• Pries and Stoner found their marks early on in the fourth set to key off a 3-0 USD run, creating a 7-2 San Diego advantage that prompted a Trojan timeout.
• USD led until the set's midpoint, which saw USC tie the score at 15 on back-to-back service aces.
• A back-and-forth battle ensued before a 4-0 Torero run put USD up by a 21-17 margin.
• The Trojans fought back with a 5-0 run of their own, pushing them ahead 22-21.
• USD rallied to tie the set at 22 and 23, but a Trojan kill and a Torero attack error gave USC a 25-23 win Sunday afternoon's fourth set, earning USC a 3-1 win in the match.

TORERO TIDBITS

• Stivrins paced the San Diego offense on Sunday with a season-high 25 kills, hitting .271 as she added a service ace and 17 digs, which were just one shy of the USD lead.
• Her 25 kills were the most by a Torero since November 18, 2021, when Grace Frohling racked up 28 in a four-set win at Saint Mary's.
• Pries was next with 11 kills, a service ace, 12 digs, and two block assists.
• Tercariol had 42 assists, three kills, seven digs, and three block assists, giving her 40-plus assists in three of her last four matches.
• Allen led USD with 18 digs, also adding five assists and a service ace.
• Blackwell led the San Diego defense with four block assists to go with seven kills (.294) and one dig.
• Both Stivrins and Blackwell were named to the Trojan Invitational All-Tournament Team after the match, joining Skylar Fields, Gala Trubint, and Lindsey Miller (USC), Olivia Utterback (UC Davis), and Gabriella Heimbauer (Marist).

UP NEXT
The Toreros will remain on the road next weekend, traveling to Atlanta to compete against Georgia and Georgia Tech in the Georgia Tech Classic at O'Keefe Gym. First serve on Saturday against the Bulldogs is set for 3 p.m. PST.