SAN FRANCISCO-- In the finale of the first night at the San Francisco Invitational, the USF women's volleyball team put up a tough test and defended well, as evidenced by a season-high 14 blocks, but eventually fell in a four set (25-20, 19-25, 25-19, 25-16) decision to Indiana.

Freshman outside hitter Tyna Adamcikova arguably had her biggest night in her young career- finishing the game with a career-high of 16 kills (.297). The first year player also contributed with two service aces on the offensive end. Fellow freshman Kate Ashman was the other Don with double-digit kills as the middle blocker totaled 10 kills.

The defense stood its ground for the majority of the game as the Dons recorded a total seven solo blocks. Junior middle blocker Marjolijn Oskam displayed an effective performance in the front line of the defense with three solo blocks. Adamcikova displayed smooth footwork and athleticism on a pair of solo blocks where she slid to her left and exploded to block a potential Hoosiers kill.

USF showed its defensive grit and intensity in the first set, but a combination of service and attack errors plagued the Dons in the first set as the Hoosiers claimed a 25-20 score. After recording the first three points of the match off a block by Oskam, a kill by senior Emily Reed and an Indiana error, the rest of the set proved to be extremely close. Though USF got up by as many as four points, the Hoosiers proved to be a tough group.

Despite dropping the first set, USF displayed a sense of urgency and fire at the start of the second set. After a deadlock at 4-4, the Dons ran away on a mini run- scoring three unanswered points to jump out to a 7-4 lead. The green and gold never looked back as the team continued to play with an exciting passion for the remainder of the set. Ashman highlighted the come back with five kills in the second frame.

Indiana regained the momentum during the entire second half of the match, as the Hoosiers limited the Dons offense with their formidable size up front.

USF split the first day of action at the invitational and will play two more matches tomorrow. Catch the Dons in action at 12:30 p.m. as they will take on the Princeton Tigers. USF will then conclude the weekend against Campbell at 7 p.m.