USC Women's Volleyball Falls in Five at Colorado

Friday, October 27

Boulder, Colo.

6:00 PM

USC

13-8,7-4Pac-12

Colorado

13-9,5-6Pac-12

Southern California

Colorado

Photo by: Thomas Fernandez/Arizona State Athletics

USC Women's Volleyball Falls in Five at Colorado

October 27, 2023 | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Box Score Highlights

The Trojans played their ninth five-set match of the season but came up short against the Buffaloes

BOULDER, Colo. – The USC women's volleyball team (13-8, 7-4 Pac-12) went the distance with Colorado (13-9, 5-6) but fell in five sets (21-25, 25-21, 19-25, 25-23, 15-13) at CU Events Center on Friday, Oct. 27.

KEY PLAYERS

Sr. OH Skylar Fields led USC with 23 kills and had seven digs with career highs of three solo blocks and five service aces for a new career mark of 31.0 points. It was Fields' 50th time in double-digit kills as a Trojan and the 29th time she has logged 20 or more kills in a match. Her fifth kill of the match brought her total at USC to 1,000 kills. She now has 1,018 as a Trojan and 1,944 including kills collected at Texas.
Jr. S Mia Tuaniga put up a season-high 54 assists and added four digs and two kills.
Sr. MB Lindsey Miller reached double-digit kills for the fourth time this season and double-digit points for the ninth time as she finished with 11 kills on 14 swings without an error for a .786 attack percentage to go with three blocks.
So. MB Tyrah Ariail had 11 kills (4e, 17att) and hit .412 to go with four digs and a career-high three service aces.
Fr. OH London Wijay posted nine kills with five digs and a service ace.
So. DS/LIB Gala Trubint had 12 digs to lead the Women of Troy with her 14th match in double-digit digs this season.
For the Buffaloes, Maya Tabron led with 18 kills (5e, 36att) and hit .361 with 11 digs, three blocks, and two aces. Lily Dwinell put up 15 kills (5e, 32att) and hit .312 with four blocks. Taylor Simpson posted 51 assists, six digs, and three blocks. Without OH Lexi Hadrych, CU turned to Ana Burilović who finished with 10 kills, nine digs, and five service aces.

HOW IT HAPPENED

USC hit .252 to Colorado's .244 and had more kills (64-57), more digs (47-43), and more service aces (9-8), but were out-blocked by the Buffaloes, 10.5 to 6.
The Trojans hit .207 in the opening set and had 12 digs to hold Colorado to a .125 outing. Despite eight hitting errors, USC overcame a five-point deficit (13-8) and completed a 25-21 win to claim set one. Miller (5) and Ariail (3) combined for eight kills without a hitting error to post a 1.000 attack rate in the first.
Both teams produced 14 kills in the second set, but the Buffs pulled out a 25-21 win to even the match. Colorado did additional damage with five aces in set two, but USC held a 17-16 lead late in the frame before CU's 5-1 run put the Buffaloes ahead for good. Colorado staved off a late USC comeback bid to finish off the win.
The Trojans racked up 15 kills and hit .522 in set three led by seven kills from Fields. Her career-high fourth service ace sealed a 25-19 USC win for a 2-1 lead in the match. Holding a slim 17-16 lead, the Trojans went on a 4-0 run on four kills from Fields. Miller earned a block and then got a kill for set point at 24-19 before Fields put a bow on the win.
The fourth set was tied 12 times and the lead changed hands six times before Colorado forced set five with a 25-23 win. Fields tallied eight more kills, but the Buffs had three blocks to help hold USC to a .158 hitting rate in the frame.
Both teams had seven kills in the final set, but USC hit .130 while CU hit .167 to conclude a 15-13 win for the match victory. So. MB Rylie McGinest came in to lead the Trojans with three kills while Fields had two. Tabron came up with four of the Buffaloes' kills in the win.

UP NEXT

The Trojans head to Salt Lake City for a Sunday-matinee matchup with Utah (9-12, 4-7) at Jon M. Huntsman Center. The Women of Troy and the Utes will meet at noon MT (11 a.m. PT) and be shown live on Pac-12 Mountain.

MATCH NOTES

USC fell to 23-4 all-time against Colorado and went to 8-4 as the Buffaloes' visitor. It was the third consecutive time CU has defeated the Trojans in Boulder (2021, '22, '23) and was only the fifth time USC and Colorado have played a five-set match; the first time the Buffaloes have prevailed.
The Trojans fell to 6-3 in nine five-set matches this season; 5-2 against Pac-12 opponents. USC goes to 152-106 in all-time five-set matches including a 66-53 record on the road. The most five-set matches the Women of Troy have played in a single season is 11, set in 2019.
USC goes to 12-6 all-time in the state of Colorado.

For more information on the USC women's volleyball team and a complete schedule and results, please visit USCTrojans.com/WVB. Fans of the Women of Troy can follow @USCWomensVolley on Facebook, X, and Instagram.