SAN DIEGO — Whatever Jennifer Petrie told her team after the first set on Thursday night, it worked.

After dropping a 25-22 decision to Portland as they stumbled through an up-and-down opening period at the Jenny Craig Pavilion, her Toreros responded with a dominant 25-9 victory in set two, evening the match at 1-1.

Then they closed set three on a 9-0 run to pull ahead with a 25-18 win. Then USD outscored the Pilots 11-3 down the stretch in the fourth and final frame, eventually prevailing by a 25-13 margin.

Chalk it up to the pep talk, chalk it up to a young team finding its footing after a rare weekend off day in conference play, but either way, San Diego volleyball (9-7, 4-2 WCC) found a way to flip the switch mid-match, earning an impressive 3-1 win over the Pilots (10-7, 3-4 WCC) while donning its pink jerseys in support of the Side-Out Foundation.

The Toreros executed their comeback with a memorable evening from senior middle blocker Haylee Stoner (Mission Hills High School), who tallied a career-high 13 kills while hitting .435 alongside five block assists and a solo block. Nemo Beach erupted for 15 kills at a .351 clip, and freshman setter Kylie Munday set forth yet another stellar performance, notching the ninth double-double of her young college career by racking up 44 assists and 10 digs to go with five block assists.

After trailing 4-3 early on in set two, it was a kill from Stoner that tied it, 4-4. USD didn't trail again in the frame, and when Stoner sealed it with another kill she had pushed San Diego to its most lopsided set victory of the season thus far.

Portland put up more of a fight in set three, holding a three-point, 16-13 advantage midway through. But a service ace from freshman Kennedy Osunsanmi, kills from Stoner and Beach, and a UOP attack error pulled the Toreros even with the Pilots down the stretch at 18-18. A combo block from Munday and Kristen Erland put San Diego in front and it was all USD from there, the Toreros' 9-0 run punctuated by a remarkable four consecutive kills from Beach to close things out.

Thursday night's fourth and final set followed a similar script, though San Diego didn't wait as long to turn up the heat on Portland. After a back-and-forth beginning to the frame in which the Pilots stayed within four points of USD, a stunning flurry of kills from Stoner and Isabel Clark set the stage for a highlight-reel save from Olivia Bennett, the Lexington, Kentucky native sprinting headlong into the bleachers to preserve a rally that eventually sent the Toreros to match point.

A few minutes later, Stoner and Munday struck for a combo block to finalize a victory that went from seeming improbable to inevitable after some key adjustments — and some words of wisdom from their legendary head coach.

NOTABLE:

• Erland had a match-high seven block assists, helping USD out-block Portland 14.5 to 7 while holding the Pilots to a minuscule -.020 hitting percentage.
• Allen paced the Torero defense with 19 digs alongside a team-high two service aces.
• Clark added 11 kills, a block assist, and a solo block.
• Osunsanmi chipped in eight kills and five block assists.
• In total, five USD players had multiple block assists on Thursday night.
• San Diego hit .075 in set one, .310 in set two, .387 in set three, and .379 in set four.

UP NEXT
The Toreros will conclude their two-match homestand this Saturday afternoon, when they host Washington State in the Jenny Craig Pavilion. First serve against the Cougars is set for 12:00 p.m.