SAN DIEGO — A match-high 14 kills from freshman opposite
Kennedy Osunsanmi helped San Diego volleyball test No. 12 Oregon through a closely contested first set, but the Ducks (6-1, 0-0 Big 10) finished strong on Saturday night to deal the Toreros (2-5, 0-0 WCC) a 3-0 loss by scores of 25-23, 25-19, and 25-23 as the USD Invitational concluded at the Jenny Craig Pavilion.
Osunsanmi hit .233 as she totaled double-digit kills for the sixth time in her first seven collegiate matches alongside a service ace, a dig, and two block assists, and was aided by fellow first year
Kylie Munday, who racked up 32 assists and 20 digs to earn the fourth double-double of her young NCAA career.
The Toreros were neck and neck with the Ducks throughout the first frame before a kill from Osunsanmi gave USD a 14-13 lead. San Diego stayed in front all the way to 17-16 on kills from
Haylee Stoner and
Nemo Beach and was within a point at 21-20 after falling behind down the stretch, but Oregon caught fire late to jump out to an early advantage in the match.
UO picked up where it left off to begin the second set, racing to an early 4-0 lead.
Nemo Beach got the Toreros on the board with a kill to make it 4-1, but San Diego was forced to use its first timeout when an Oregon service ace made it 9-3 in the visitors' favor. Kills from Osunsanmi and
Ella Durham got USD back within four at 11-7 after the break, and they were behind by five at 14-9 when Oregon took a timeout of its own. Three straight San Diego kills — two from Osunsanmi and one from Beach — cut the Toreros' deficit to three (15-12) later on, though USD got no closer despite fending off back-to-back set points as it fell behind by a 2-0 margin.
It was more of the same early on in the third, with Oregon assembling a 5-1 lead ahead of a kill from Beach and a service ace from
Madi Allen that got USD back into the mix. USD used its first timeout trailing 9-5, and was able to hold the Ducks off the board coming out of the break as it embarked on a 4-1 run to pull within one at 12-11 after back-to-back combo blocks from Osunsanmi and
Kristen Erland. Two straight service aces from Allen tied it at 14-14, then Beach brought San Diego back in front with a kill to make it 15-14 in the Toreros' favor. Oregon responded to quickly tie things at 15-15 prior to USD trading points with the Ducks as the set wound to a close to stay within striking distance, a stretch that included big scores from Stoner and
Isabel Clark. A kill from Erland cut the deficit to one at 21-20 before San Diego fought off three straight match points to stay alive, but Oregon took advantage of a Torero attack error to win the final frame by a 25-23 margin and secure a 3-0 sweep of USD in the match.
Beach set forth a double-double of her own in the loss, recording 12 kills and 14 digs. Erland and Allen chipped in on defense with three block assists and 13 digs, respectively.
San Diego is back in action on Thursday, when it travels to Baton Rouge, Louisiana to take on North Florida at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center as part of a multi-team event hosted by LSU. First serve against the Ospreys is set for 1:00 p.m. PST.
