SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. - The University of San Francisco volleyball team (8-9, 2-3) dropped a four-set game against Saint Mary's (7-9, 1-3) Thursday evening at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 

• Getting off to a strong start in the first set, San Francisco won eight of the first nine points, led by two aces from Hayden Goodman and a kill from Astrid Puig for an 8-1 advantage. Saint Mary's trailed by one late in the frame until the Dons secured the final four points with kills from Goodman, Kennedy Muckelroy and Aylen Ayub to win the set 25-20. 
• In the second set, the Gaels took an early 4-0 lead over the Dons. Continuing to hold their advantage, the Dons could not respond and dropped the set 25-14.
• The Gaels overpowered the Dons in the third set, rolling to a 16-8 lead midway through the frame. In response, San Francisco scored four straight points with kills from Puig and Goodman, alongside two consecutive aces from Ezgi Ozkan to close the gap to 17-12. Saint Mary's claimed the third set by scoring eight of the last eleven points for a final score of 25-16.
• The green and gold took a 4-2 advantage from a block assist by Crystal Galaviz and Goodman, alongside kills from Ayub and Muckelroy, to begin the fourth set. Going back and forth, the Dons, trailing 15-12, used a 7-0 run to regain the lead at 19-15.  
• Saint Mary's responded with a 5-1 scoring run, evening the frame at 20. Petkova recorded a kill to pull the Dons ahead by one, but the Gaels responded with a five-point run to win the set 25-20.  

NOTABLE PERFORMANCE: 

• As a team, San Francisco recorded a season-high of 11 serving aces, with Denham and Goodman recording three aces apiece.
• Ayub had a strong game offensively as she recorded a hitting percentage of .500 and a kill percentage of .635 from five kills off eight attempts. The setter also accumulated 26 assists throughout the four-set affair.
• Muckelroy was the Dons leader in points tonight with 10.5, hitting double digits in kills with 10 and recording one block assist. 

POSTGAME WITH THE DONS:

• To view the full highlights of today's match, please click here.
• To view the full postgame interview with head coach Diogo Silva, please click here.

UP NEXT:
San Francisco returns to action at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 7, when it hosts LMU at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center.
 
FOLLOW US:
For more information and updates on the University of San Francisco volleyball program, be sure to follow the Dons on Twitter @USFDonsVB, @USFDonsVB on Instagram and @USFDonsVball on Facebook.
 
MERCHANDISE:
Want to dress like the Dons? Get your official San Francisco Dons gear from the University of San Francisco bookstore today! Click here to purchase.
 
SPONSOR THE DONS:
The University of San Francisco Athletics Department would like to acknowledge and thank our primary sponsor – Corona - for their continued support of USF Athletics. Interested in sponsoring the Dons? Please contact Frank Allocco, the Executive Senior Associate Athletics Director of External Relations, at fallocco@usfca.edu or at (415) 422-4561.