It was all smiles for the USC women’s volleyball team on senior night after sweeping the Iowa Hawkeyes in straight sets.
Five seniors were honored on the night: graduate outside hitter Ally Batenhorst, graduate outside hitter Grae Gosnell, senior setter Mia Tuaniga, senior middle blocker Lindsey Miller and middle blocker Tyrah Ariail.
It was a great night, specifically for USC’s newest PVF draft picks, Batenhorst and Tuaniga, who continued to act as each other’s partners in crime while garnering the sweep. Batenhorst finished the night with 16 kills, hitting at .325, while Tuaniga ended with 35 assists and 10 digs in a double-double — her ninth of the season.
“[Batenhorst and Tuaniga’s] leadership and how they steer the ship in the right way, I couldn’t be more proud of that,” head coach Brad Keller said.
Shortly after, Batenhorst and Tuaniga were able to reflect on the season this past year and everything that the team has done.
“I’m just really proud of how far we have come,” Batenhorst said. “I think we have grown so much and we have grown to get to this point. I think us coming in tonight [to] just put our foot down and sweep [the Hawkeyes] 3-0 and play our best volleyball is really amazing.”
“Big Ten is no joke,” Tuaniga added. “Just to see all the hard work, not only us as a team but even as coaches… and it’s just really nice to see it all come into fruition.”
Despite the bright lights on Batenhorst and Tuaniga, Ariail also had a great night, hitting at .500 with seven kills and four blocks. The Trojans’ front three seemed to be all over the court, contesting each and every kill attempt that the Hawkeyes went for. USC finished with 6.5 blocks; however, the stat sheet did not tell the whole story, with the Trojans winning almost every single joust and being a huge reason why the Hawkeyes had so many errors.
Along with the strong performances from the graduating players, freshman middle blocker Favor Anyanwu played a great game and was another huge factor defensively for the Trojans. She finished with nine kills while hitting at .533 and had two blocks as well.
Junior libero Gala Trubint continued to make her name noticed, with a match-high 15 digs and seven assists thrown in as well. This is the 68th time she has reached the double-digit assist mark in her career.
As USC puts a bow on its regular season, Batenhorst and Tuaniga briefly talked about how they are feeling heading into the postseason at the NCAA Tournament.
“I think we are the strongest we have been,” Batenhorst said. “That goes to show how much work we have put in throughout all these games. We’ve had some ups and downs but I think that we are especially finishing strong tonight and we are ready for what’s to come.”
“Especially after every game the things we are trying to fine tune [are] not really that stressful and it’s not really taking over our headspace,” Tuaniga said. “It’s little things and that speaks a lot… in the past we have had to work on a lot going into the [NCAA] Tournament.”
Although it is likely for the Trojans to be in the tournament, it is not yet confirmed. However, the alarms are set for 3 p.m. this Sunday when the NCAA will announce the 64-team playoff bracket, and USC awaits to hear if it receives an at-large playoff bid.