No. 20 USC Serves Up Four-Set Win Over Utah

Saturday, October 11

Galen Center

7:00 PM

USC

Utah

No. 20 USC Serves Up Four-Set Win Over Utah

October 11, 2014 | Women's Volleyball

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Oct. 11, 2014

Final Stats | Notes | Box Score (PDF)

LOS ANGELES - USC women's volleyball junior outside hitter Samantha Bricio lit up the scoreboard with a career-high 32.0 points to lift the Women of Troy (10-6, 3-3 Pac-12) to a four-set victory (25-14, 25-20, 21-25, 25-18) over Utah (11-6, 1-5) at Galen Center on Saturday, Oct. 11. Bricio equaled USC's all-time single-match mark for service aces with a career-best eight aces as the Trojans won their third straight match; the program's 950th all-time.

Bricio was unstoppable at the outset as she racked up 11.0 points in the first set alone. She finished with 23 kills (4e, 50att) and hit .380 to go with the eight aces and two block assists. She also put up 10 digs to record her eighth double-double of the season; the 30th of her career. The eight aces were not only a career high for Bricio, it marked the fourth time this season that she has eclipsed the six-ace mark in a single match; the seventh time in her career. It also pushed her season total to 54 aces and moved her into fifth in USC's single-season record books.

Sophomore libero Taylor Whittingham also had a career-high night as she clocked in with 29 digs. Junior middle blocker Alicia Ogoms matched her career best with 10 kills (1e, 15att) and hit .600 to go with a pair of blocks. Sophomore outside hitter Ebony Nwanebu also had 10 kills (5e, 30att, .167) and two of the Trojans' season-high 15 service aces.

Freshman outside hitter Lauryn Gillis also had three aces and scored four kills and four digs. Senior outside hitter Emily Young tallied four kills to go with four assists and a pair of blocks and freshman middle blocker Jordan Dunn came in for the final two sets to rack up three kills (0e, 7att, .429), two aces of her own, and four blocks.

The Trojans hit .283 in the match with 57 kills (18e, 138att) on the setting of sophomore Alice Pizzasegola and senior Hayley Crone who had 25 and 23 assists respectively. It was USC's 10th straight victory over the Utes and improved the Trojans' record against Utah to 13-1 all-time.

For the Utes, four players reached eight kills including Carly Trueman, Bailey Bateman, Chelsey Schofield, and Adora Anae. Bateman led all players with six blocks. Lea Adolph had 19 digs to lead the defensive effort. Setter Kalee Kirby had 22 assists and 10 digs for the double-double. Utah hit .191 in the match with 45 kills (20e) on 131 attacks.

Utah had the 4-2 lead in the first set, but Bricio scored on a crosscourt terminator to put the ball in her hands for an incredible service run that included six aces to give USC a 10-4 lead. The Trojans scored nine unanswered points before the Utes could stop the bleeding. The Women of Troy went up by 10 at 17-7 to prompt a Utah timeout, but claimed a 12-point lead, 19-7, on a service ace by Nwanebu. The Utes fought to stay in it, but Ogoms put a quick set from Pizzasegola to the floor for a 20-8 lead. Up 13, Whittingham put up a spectacular one-armed dig to keep a rally alive before Bricio earned the point for a 14-point lead and set point at 24-10. The Utes scored the next four, but Bricio earned her 11th point of the set to seal a 25-14 win. USC hit .370 in the opening frame with 13 kills (3e) on 27 swings and held Utah to a .152 outing with nine kills (4e) on 33 attempts.

The Trojans opened the second set with three straight points including a pair of back-to-back service aces by Gillis. USC led by two points, 9-7, on a crosscourt kill by Nwanebu, but the Utes pulled into a tie at nine-all when Anae earned back-to-back points. Bricio pulverized a pipe set from Pizzasegola to put the Trojans up, 11-10, and USC was never truly threatened again from that point. Bricio bounced a shot off the floor and tooled the Ute block for a four-point Trojan lead at 14-10 but it was her eighth service ace of the night that put USC up five, 20-15. Like they did in the first set, the Utes made a late run, but Nwanebu's crosscourt kill ended any hopes of a Utah comeback as USC won, 25-20. The Trojans hit .375 in the second set with 16 kills (4e) on 32 attacks and outpaced the Utes who had 10 kills (3e, 28att) for a .250 rate.

The Utes came out with the momentum in the third set and walked out to a 10-6 lead. Bricio and Young tooled the Utah block on back-to-back plays to get USC within two at 12-10, but the Trojans could never pull even with the Utes who posted five blocks in the third. Utah scored in bunches and put three straight together to get up by seven points, 19-12, before Bricio's kill stopped the Ute run. Nwanebu tooled the Utah block to get USC within six and Dunn turned a quick set from Pizzasegola into points to put the Trojans down five, 22-17. Bricio earned a kill before Dunn and Nwanebu blocked the Utah attack to pull USC within four at 24-20. Nwanebu's kill brought the Trojans within three at 24-21, but the Utes had the final point for a 25-21 win. The Trojans had a .205 hitting percentage in the third with 17 kills (8e) on 44 attacks while Utah put in a .303 rate with 14 kills (4e) on 33 attacks.

The Women of Troy came out with a renewed sense of urgency in the fourth set and showed great efficiency with a quick 3-0 lead, but Utah wouldn't go quietly as it knotted the score at five-all and then six-all on a pair of blocks. Dunn's kill on a quick set from Crone broke the final tie and her service ace put the Trojans up for good at 8-6. While the Utes continued to find ways to stay close, it was the USC block that signaled the beginning of the end for Utah. Dunn teamed with Young to earn a block and a 15-13 lead. Then she met up with Nwanebu for a block and the 17-13 lead. Finally, she and Bricio teamed to knock down a shot by Shelby Dalton for a big six-point lead at 19-13. Dunn served up her second ace to keep the Trojans on top at 22-17 before Ogoms' kill made the score 23-18. Nwanebu had the final word as she served up an ace to cement the 25-18 win. The Trojans had 11 kills (3e) on 35 attacks to hit .229 in the fourth set and made things difficult for the Utes to hold them to a .081 hitting percentage with 12 kills (9e) on 37 swings.

USC remains home for two more matches next weekend. The Trojans and Galen Center will host Oregon on Friday (Oct. 17) at 8 p.m. PT and then take on Oregon State on Sunday (Oct. 19) at 11 a.m. PT. Both matches will be carried live on the Pac-12 Networks.

Fans can purchase tickets at GetTrojanTix.com or by calling 213-740-GOSC. For more information on the USC women's volleyball team and a complete schedule, please visit USCTrojans.com and follow @USCWomensVolley on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

MATCH NOTES

USC improved to 13-1 all-time against Utah and won its 10th in a row dating back to 1988. During that run, the Trojans have lost just five sets to the Utes. USC also moved to 6-0 against Utah since the Utes joined the Pac-12 conference in 2011 including a 3-0 mark at the Galen Center.
The Women of Troy reached a milestone with their 950th victory in program history.
Junior OH Samantha Bricio served a career-high eight aces to match USC's all-time single-match record which is also held by five other players. The last time a Trojan player served eight aces, Asia Kaczor reached the mark at Oregon State on Nov. 9, 2007.
Bricio's eight aces marked the fourth time this season that she has had at least six in a single match; the seventh time in her career. It is also the 24th time that she has had at least three aces in a single match.
With 54 aces this season, Bricio moved into a fifth place for single-season aces in USC history.
Bricio had 23 kills and 10 digs to post her eighth double-double of the season; the 30th of her career.
Bricio's 32.0 points is a new career high.
Bricio logged her 1,415th career point to move into sixth in USC history, ahead of Asia Kaczor (1,389.0; 2006-07) and Emily Adams (1,412.5; 2001-04).
Sophomore libero Taylor Whittingham posted a career-high 29 digs for her sixth straight match in double digits. It is her team-high 12th such match this season.
Junior MB Alicia Ogoms matched her career high with 10 kills.
The Trojans served a season-best 15 service aces.