SAN FRANCISCO — A dominant defensive performance and a spread-out attack carried the University of San Francisco volleyball team to another milestone victory Thursday, as the Dons beat Loyola Marymount for the first time in six years with a 3-1 (25-18, 21-25, 25-22, 25-19) West Coast Conference victory at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Dons (8-19, 4-12 WCC) never trailed in the first set, forcing Loyola Marymount (15-13, 9-7 WCC) into six errors during the match's first 14 points. The Lions would commit 12 errors in the first set alone, hitting -.088. San Francisco forced four of those with four blocks. The Dons would collect 15 blocks on the night – a season high. An early 7-1 run powered by five LMU attack errors (with two USF blocks) set the Dons apart and their lead never dropped below four on their way to a 25-18 set win.
   
• It was much of the same in the third set when San Francisco grabbed an important, 25-22, set victory to break a 1-1 match tie. The Lions won set two, 25-21, to even things up, holding USF to .029 hitting in the frame – more than .250 below their first set hitting percentage (.281). LMU scored the first point of the third, but never led again. San Francisco got out to a seven-point advantage with an 8-3 run, powered in part by three more LMU errors. The Lions made a quick charge late, scoring three of four points to make it 24-22, but Kathya Garcia finished off the 25-22 win with a kill – one of her team-leading 14 on the night.
   
• The Lions were not going to go quietly, having won the previous 11 meetings against the Dons, including a 3-0 sweep in Los Angeles on Sept. 28 of this season. The fourth set had five lead changes and 11 ties by the time both teams reached a 15-15 tie. But San Francisco outscored Loyola Marymount 10-4 from there, including five consecutive points to turn a one-point advantage into a six-point lead at 23-17. Valeria Alegrias Cambindo – one of three Dons with double-digit kills Thursday – finished off the Dons' win with a kill to clinch it at 25-19.

NOTABLE NUMBERS

• 3: San Francisco was able to spread out its attack, leading to three players collecting double-digit kills. Garcia led USF with 15, Emily Zinger tallied 11 and Alegrias Cambindo chalked up 10.
• 8: Zinger tied a career-high with a match-best eight total blocks. Zinger was one of three Dons with at least five blocks, and six who had multiple blocks on the night.
• 11: Loyola Marymount had won 11 straight versus the Dons before USF's win on Thursday. San Francisco last beat the Lions on Nov. 23, 2013, in San Francisco – almost six years to the day. The Dons also snapped a four-year, eight-match losing streak versus Portland on Saturday.

COMING UP

• The Dons will celebrate five seniors – two from the beach volleyball program and three on the indoor team – in a pregame ceremony at noon Saturday before their match versus Pepperdine. Fans can purchase tickets and find all live coverage links on USFDons.com.