No. 23 USC Women's Volleyball Falls to Illinois

Saturday, September 26

Champaign, Ill.

7:00 p.m. / 5:00 p.m. PT

USC

7-5,1-1Big Ten

Illinois

10-3,2-0Big Ten

Team	1	2	3	Final F
Southern California	21	23	21	0
Illinois	25	25	25	3

Highlights

Photo by: Bryce Dechert

No. 23 USC Women's Volleyball Falls to Illinois

September 26, 2026 | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Box Score Highlights

The Trojans were led by London Wijay’s 12-kill performance in a straight-set loss to the Illini

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The 23rd-ranked USC women's volleyball team (7-5, 1-1 Big Ten) fell in straight sets (25-21, 25-23, 25-21) to Illinois (10-3, 2-0) at Huff Hall on Saturday, Sept. 26.

KEY PLAYERS

RS Jr. OH London Wijay scored 13.0 points earned on 12 kills (3e, 31att, .290) and two blocks to go with six digs.
Jr. MB Mia Tvrdy had nine kills (3e, 15att) to hit .400 and added four blocks.
RS Jr. MB Leah Ford totaled six kills (0e) on 14 swings to hit .429 and had two blocks.
So. LIB Taylor Deckert had 13 digs to lead the USC floor defense and picked up three assists.
Fr. S Milly McGee put up 27 assists and had three digs, three blocks, and a kill.
For the Illini, Alyssa Aguayo had match-high honors with 18 kills (1e, 34att) on .500 hitting and added eight digs, two blocks, and a service ace. Kenna Phelan dished out 36 assists and had nine digs with two kills. Paityn Chapman led all players with 15 digs and had four blocks to go with five kills and one of four Illinois service aces.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The first set had eight ties, but the Illini maintained distance to close out a 25-21 win. Illinois hit .200; a shade over USC's .178 and beat the Trojans who had 14 kills to the Illini's 11. USC's six service errors, two block errors, and six hitting errors allowed Illinois to close the door on the opening frame with Aguayo tallying five kills.
Illinois never trailed in the second set, but the Trojans stayed the course and came within a point at 24-23 before an Illini kill ended the set, 25-23, for a 2-0 Illinois lead. Aguayo added six more kills to lift the Illini to .235 hitting. Both teams had four blocks, but USC hit just .121 in the frame despite four kills from Wijay.
Neither team had the block going in the third as Illinois registered 19 kills and USC 18. The Trojans took a momentary lead at 20-19 on a tool-shot from Wijay, but the Illini went on a 6-1 run to end the match and seal the sweep. Illinois hit .462 and had 19 kills to just one error on 39 swings while the Trojans put up 18 kills with just two errors on 47 attacks. Wijay had four kills and five digs to pace USC's action in the third.

UP NEXT

USC hosts Michigan and Michigan State for its first Big Ten home matches at Galen Center next weekend. The Trojans take on the Wolverines on Friday (Oct. 2) for USC's B1G Premiere match set for an 8 p.m. PT start on Big Ten Network. USC then hosts Michigan State on Sunday (Oct. 4) for a 2 p.m. match that will be shown on Big Ten Plus.

MATCH NOTES

USC fell to 4-5 all-time against Illinois and to 0-3 against the Illini on the road.
The Women of Troy moved to 5-3 in three-set matches this season.
The Trojans dropped to 5-4 all-time in the state of Illinois with a 1-3 mark in the city of Champaign.

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, TikTok, and Instagram.