Comeback Falls Short as Dons Fall to Bulldogs in Five Sets

Friday, September 11

Northridge, Calif.

2:00 p.m.

University of San Francisco

4-4,0-0WCC

Fresno State

3-4,0-0Pac-12

Team	1	2	3	4	5	Final F
Fresno St.	25	25	18	15	15	3
San Francisco	21	14	25	25	13	2

VB Petra Fritz waiting for a serve vs. CSUB 2026

Photo by: Christina Leung

9/11/2026 5:21:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

NORTHRIDGE, Calif. – Despite erasing an early deficit, the University of San Francisco volleyball team (4-4) dropped a 3-2 nonconference decision to Fresno State (2-4) in the opening match of The Ridge Invitational Friday afternoon at Premier America Credit Union Arena.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

After dropping the opening two frames, San Francisco cut the deficit in half with a convincing 25-18 third-set victory. Leading by three, 16-13, midway through the set, the Dons pulled away, recording eight of the following 11 points to reach set point at 24-16.
After the Bulldogs pulled to within six, 24-18, Emma Neukirchen ended the frame with a kill to get the green and gold on the board.
San Francisco dominated the third set, tying the match at two sets apiece with a 25-15 victory. Tied at five early on, Petra Fritz kickstarted a 6-1 scoring run with a kill as the Dons pushed ahead 11-6. Fritz added another kill to end the run while Laura Amaro added a service ace.
Leading 14-9 later on, the Dons recorded another lengthy run, winning eight of 10 points to build their advantage to double digits, 22-11. Holding the lead the remainder of the frame, San Francisco finished off the fourth with kills from Fritz and Anica Bobic and a Jordan Smart service ace for the 25-15 win.
In a tightly contested fifth and final set, Fresno State pulled away late and held on for a 15-13 victory to solidify the match win.

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

Reaching the 20-kill threshold for the second time in eight matches, Fritz led San Francisco with 20 while totaling a .205 hitting percentage. Defensively, she added four total blocks and eight digs.
Katariina Korhonen nearly recorded a double-double with nine kills and a team-high 10 digs.
Smart paced the Dons in passing, recording 24 assists to lead both teams, two short of tying her season-best of 26 against Belmont on August 29.
Amaro had success from the service line, accumulating a team-high three service aces.

UP NEXT:
San Francisco returns to Premier America Credit Union Arena at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 12, when it takes on host CSUN at The Ridge Invitational.

FOLLOW US:
For more information and updates on the University of San Francisco volleyball program, 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 – Planet Orange - for their continued support of San Francisco Athletics.

*This article created using technology provided by Data Skrive.*