USC Women’s Volleyball delivered a master class in scrappiness and teamwork Friday night in their three-set win over the LSU Tigers.
Coming off a four-set win over LSU on Thursday, the Trojans bested the Tigers 25-19, 26-21, 25-16 to close the two-match series.
Head coach Brad Keller said that he preferred the LSU instant rematch to the typical season schedule.
“I would like it to be more like this, where you would play the opponent twice,” said Keller. “Number one, it’s electric for the crowd, it’s familiar for the crowd, so they can get more into it… number two, you get to learn more about your team and how to make an adjustment against a team and that learning curve to me is higher and faster.”
Senior middle blocker Riley McGinest led the offensive charge, accounting for four of USC’s first seven points. The teams continued trading points, with errors on both sides until consecutive kills by redshirt sophomore outside hitter London Wijay and McGinest widened the gap to a 17-13 lead over the Tigers.
USC cinched a massive triple block after a spirited rally in which the Trojans managed to keep the ball up after an attack from LSU bounced off the shoulder of redshirt sophomore middle blocker Leah Ford.
The match had impressive performances from both Ford and McGinest, as they ended the night with hitting percentages of .600 and .667, respectively.
USC called a timeout while leading 19-23 following the loss of a big rally and an attack error by freshman setter Reese Messer. After the timeout, freshman opposite hitter Abigail Mullen secured two consecutive kills to end the set 19-25 and gain back momentum for the Trojans.
Mullen credited the back row and setter for much of the team’s success during the match.
“Our passers are doing a great job getting the ball up to the net,” said Mullen.. “And then Reese is just creating so many one on one opportunities for us, so that just gives the hitters a lot more confidence.”
The second set was far more physical for the Trojans, the block count rising from 1.5 in set one to eight in set two. The team also nearly doubled their attack attempts, with 81 attempts in set two compared to the previous set’s 46.
LSU saw their first lead in the set after a kill from senior outside hitter Nia Washington brought the score to 11-10. USC quickly regained the lead with two service aces from senior libero/defensive specialist Gala Trubint.
The Trojans held the Tigers to a deficit or tie for the rest of the set as Mullen led the offense with eight kills. McGinest and Wijay followed closely with seven kills each, many of Wijay’s being from the back row.
Mid-set, LSU responded to a triple block by McGinest, Messer, and Wijay with a kill from redshirt junior right side Tireh Smith. Messer, with characteristic poise, then scored a no-look backwards tip for a side-out.
Set three saw a swift victory for the Trojans in a 25-16 win. Redshirt freshman outside hitter Brooklyn Tealer worked her way back from a negative hitting percentage in the second set with nine kills. Mullen again spearheaded the attack in combination with Messer, securing 11 kills.
Keller also spoke of the team composition, illustrating a bright future for USC.
“This is a very balanced attack, and there’s a lot of confidence starting to flow with people,” Keller said. There’s people on the bench right now that if they have their shot, they can do some big-time things for us.”
The Trojans play again at the Galen Center against the California Golden Bears on Sunday.