Box Score
SPOKANE, Wash. – The San Francisco women's volleyball team lost a five-setter to Gonzaga to break a four-match winning streak Saturday afternoon at the Martin Centre.
The Dons and Bulldogs, who battled to the full complement of five sets earlier in the season in San Francisco, to the same result, were tight for the duration. USF took the first set 25-17 before dropping the second to head into halftime tied. The third again went the way of Gonzaga and the Dons were forced to battle out the fourth.
USF picked up the 25-23 win in a set that saw eight tie scores and four lead changes to force a decisive fifth set. The Dons couldn't pull out the final set as the Bulldogs went on to win 15-10 to sweep the season series.
With the loss, USF moves to 11-11 on the season (7-5 WCC), while Gonzaga hot on their heels in conference action stands at 10-12 (6-7 WCC).
USF was led by a trio of scorers, with
Malina Terrell's 18 kills on .364 leading the way. The Dons got 18 kills from
Anja Segota and 10 from
Katarina Pilepic in the contest.
Mackenzie Murtagh's 26 assists led the squad and freshman
Kiara McKibben helped on 21 plays for USF. Senior
Rebecca Kopilovitch finished with a match-high 17 digs. Blocking, something that the Dons have been focusing on, was at a minimum in Saturday's match as the Dons managed three total blocks, compared to Gonzaga's nine.
Riding a four-match home streak, USF heads back to the friendly confines War Memorial Gym for its next two matches. The Dons host No. 21 BYU on Nov. 7 at 6:30 p.m., and the difficult home stand continues on Nov. 9, when eighth-ranked San Diego comes to the Hilltop.
