San Diego (4-6, 0-0 WCC)  •  Saint Mary's (6-7, 0-1 WCC)

September 23 • 12:00 P.M. | Jenny Craig Pavilion (5,700) • San Diego, California

Streaming  •  ESPN+  |  Live Statistics  • USDToreros.com

Social  •  Facebook.com/USDVolleyball  •  Twitter.com/USDVolleyball  •  Instagram.com/USDVolleyball

SAN DIEGO — San Diego volleyball (4-6, 0-0 WCC) is set to return home for the first time in 21 days on Saturday afternoon, hosting Saint Mary's in the Jenny Craig Pavilion in what will mark the Toreros' first West Coast Conference match of 2023.

Saturday's contest is set to begin at 12:00 p.m. and will be streamed live on ESPN+ with David Gentile on the call.

Live statistics will be available on USDToreros.com.

LAST TIME OUT
•The Toreros traveled to Atlanta for the Georgia Tech Classic at O'Keefe Gym this past weekend, splitting a pair of matches against Georgia and No. 10 Georgia Tech.

• San Diego began the weekend by beating Georgia 3-1 last Saturday, defeating the Bulldogs in what marked their most impressive win of the season to date. After dropping the first set 25-23, the Toreros rallied to take three straight frames, winning the second 25-21, prevailing in a remarkable 31-29 third set, and securing a 25-22 win in the fourth and final set.

• Nemo Beach and Amber Stivrins had strong performances in the match against Georgia. Beach tallied a career-high 18 kills, while Stivrins had a double-double against her former team, totaling 14 kills and 13 digs.

• San Diego wrapped up the weekend with a tough 3-0 defeat to tournament host No. 10 Georgia Tech, falling to the Yellow Jackets by scores of 28-26, 25-21, and 25-15.

ALL-TIME SERIES AGAINST SAINT MARY'S
•The Toreros are 62-14 against the Gaels all-time, and have won each of the last eight matchups between the two teams.

• Six of those last eight meetings (and each of the last two) have been San Diego sweeps.

WEST COAST CONFERENCE DOMINANCE
•After going undefeated in WCC play last season, the Toreros enter Saturday afternoon's action riding an 18-match conference win streak.

•USD swept 13 consecutive WCC matches last year, beating Gonzaga (twice), Portland (twice), San Francisco (twice), Santa Clara (twice), Pacific (twice), Saint Mary's (twice), and No. 17 BYU in straight sets.

•San Diego is 293-73 (.800) in conference play since seven-time WCC Coach of the Year Jennifer Petrie took over in 1999. The Toreros have captured 10 WCC Championships in that span.

IN IT TO WIN IT
• San Diego was picked first in the 2023 WCC Volleyball Preseason Coaches Poll, the West Coast Conference announced on August 23.

• USD took home the top spot in the poll with 75 points and a commanding seven first-place votes, finishing six points ahead of second-place Pepperdine (two first-place votes). It's the first time that San Diego has been picked to win the conference since 2016, when the Toreros opened the season ranked No. 26 nationally and finished the year 24-6 (15-3 WCC).

THREE TOREROS EARN ALL-WCC PRESEASON HONORS
• Three Toreros were named to the 2023 WCC Volleyball Preseason Team, the West Coast Conference announced on August 23.

• Middle blockers Leyla Blackwell and Haylee Stoner and outside hitter Amber Stivrins comprised USD's preseason team selections. Blackwell has now earned a WCC preseason honor in back-to-back seasons (2022 and 2023), while Stoner and Stivrins received preseason recognition for the first time in their San Diego careers.

MILESTONE CHASING
• Between her 169 kills as a freshman at Louisville, her 692 kills in three seasons at Georgia, and her 125 kills as a Torero thus far in 2023, Stivrins enters Saturday's action with 986 kills, just 14 away from 1,000 for her career.

• And with a career record of 482-170, head coach Jennifer Petrie is now just 18 wins away from 500 at the helm in San Diego.

LEYLA BLOCKS WELL
•San Diego, California native Leyla Blackwell leads the WCC and ranks 31st nationally with an average of 1.34 blocks per set.

• Her 51 total blocks through 10 matches in 2023 is the most on the USD roster.

• Blackwell is now a six-time WCC Defensive Player of the Week after earning the honor on September 11.

BLACKWELL AND STIVRINS SWEEP WCC WEEKLY AWARDS (SEPTEMBER 11)
• Amber Stivrins and Leyla Blackwell were named the WCC Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week for September 11, 2023, as announced by the West Coast Conference. The duo earned the honors after leading the Toreros to a pair of wins over Marist and UC Davis at the Trojan Invitational at Galen Center, which secured the pair tandem selections to the event's All-Tournament Team.

• Stivrins, a graduate outside hitter who transferred to USD this season from Georgia, boasted 57 kills and seven service aces in Los Angeles, hitting .376 and averaging 4.75 kills per set. It's the first weekly WCC award of her career after being named to the 2023 All-WCC Volleyball Preseason Team in August.

• Blackwell, a senior middle blocker, paced the USD defense at the Trojan Invitational with 18 blocks (one solo) for an average of 1.58 blocks per set. She is now a six-time WCC Defensive Player of the Week winner after earning the honor three times in 2021, twice in 2022, and once in 2023. Blackwell joined Stivrins on the 2023 All-WCC Volleyball Preseason Team last month.

AMERICA'S TOP COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL COACH
• Jennifer Petrie, a proven winner who in 2022 cemented her status as not only one of the premier volleyball minds in the country but as one of the most successful and decorated leaders in San Diego sports history, will enter her 25th season as San Diego volleyball's head coach in 2023.

JENNIFER PETRIE'S 2022 ACCOLADES
• 2022 AVCA National Coach of the Year
• Unanimous 2022 VolleyballMag.com National Coach of the Year
• 2022 AVCA Pacific South Region Coach of the Year
• 2022 West Coast Conference Coach of the Year

• San Diego has advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 22 of the past 24 seasons. Petrie's career record is 478-165 with a .743 winning percentage that ranks 10th among all active Division I coaches with 400 or more wins. Additionally, the Toreros are riding a streak of 13 straight NCAA appearances.

• Petrie entered the 2023 season just 22 wins away from 500 for her coaching career.

A MOTHER-DAUGHTER MOMENT
• September 2nd's matchup between San Diego and Boston College in the Jenny Craig Pavilion was more than just the finale of the USD Invitational — it included a moment a lifetime in the making.

• Junior Boston College setter Jane Petrie is the daughter of USD head coach Jennifer Petrie, and sealed the first set for the Eagles with a service ace before the Toreros rallied for a 3-1 win.

• Petrie hosted BC for a team dinner earlier in the week and took a picture with her daughter and the rest of the Boston College team on the court following the match.

READY TO RUN IT BACK
• San Diego won 31 games in 2022 (including 28 in a row and a perfect 18-0 West Coast Conference record) and reached the NCAA National Semifinal for the first time ever after achieving a No. 2 national ranking, marking the most successful season in program history.

• The Toreros' lone two losses last season came at the hands of the teams that played for that year's national championship — Texas and Louisville — and USD took a set from both the Longhorns and the Cardinals.

• USD's 2023 roster features nine returners from last year's squad, including 2022 All-WCC First Team selection/2022 VolleyballMag.com All-American Honorable Mention Leyla Blackwell and 2022 All-WCC Honorable Mention Haylee Stoner.

HITTING THE PORTAL
• The Toreros added two players from the transfer portal this offseason: setter Anni Evans from Nebraska and outside hitter Amber Stivrins from Georgia.

• Evans enters this season with one year of college eligibility remaining following 2023.

• Stivrins, a graduate transfer, is in her final college season.

NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
• In addition to the Toreros' two transfers, four freshmen are set to join the team for the 2023 season. They include…

-  Nemo Beach (Chandler, AZ) was named Arizona Gatorade Player of the Year during her senior season
- Tatum Lane, (San Pedro, CA), who was selected to the All-Bay League First Team
- Liv Hertzog,  (Long Beach, CA) who was the Trinity League MVP out of Mater Dei
- Ella Durham (Dublin, OH) who earned 2023 Prepvolleyball Top 150 honors

A FAMILY AFFAIR
• Anni Evans played with Amber Stivrins' sister, three-time AVCA All-American Lauren Stivrins, at Nebraska for two seasons (2020-2021 and 2021).

• Stivrins' father, Alex, played basketball at Creighton and Colorado followed by time in the NBA, including a stint with the Atlanta Hawks in 1993.

• Her brother, Lucas Stivrins, played basketball at Nevada.

• Both of Kylie Pries' brothers have professional baseball experience. Jake Pries spent two seasons in the New York Yankees organization, and Micah Pries currently plays for the Cleveland Guardians Triple-A affiliate.

• Maya Kitna's uncle, Jon Kitna, played in the NFL for 14 seasons, spending time with the Seahawks, Bengals, Lions, and Cowboys.

LEAVING A LEGACY
• Madi Allen's is the third member of her family to attend USD, following her mother and brother.

LONGTIME TEAMMATES
• Leyla Blackwell and Madi Allen played club volleyball together for three years prior to college.

A GLOBAL GAME
• Eight states and two countries are represented on USD's 2023 roster, including California, Illinois, Maine, Arizona, Nebraska, Kentucky, Ohio, and Brazil.

HOMETOWN HEROES
• This year's USD roster includes three San Diego natives: Leyla Blackwell, Haylee Stoner, and Madi Allen.