#24 San Diego Completes Impressive Home Sweep of Gonzaga

Game Notes

• Gonzaga at #24 San Diego; West Coast Conference (WCC) Match
• San Diego, CA
• San Diego improves to 13-4 (6-1 WCC); Gonzaga drops to 11-8 (6-1 WCC)
• Attendance: 321
• Game Stats

Gonzaga entered their match against #24th ranked San Diego, undefeated in conference play, attempting to solidify their place at the top of the West Coast Conference standings. In the end, it was the host Toreros of San Diego that completed a dominant sweep of visiting Gonzaga, winning their ninth match in their last 10 attempts. Set scores were 25-18, 25-20, and 25-21. Jayden Kennedy led the Toreros with 15 kills and 5 blocks, while Addie Picha and Lauren Fuller chipped in 9 and 8 kills respectively. Senior setter Kristen Gengenbacher had a big night for the hosts, dishing out 37 assists while also collecting 13 digs and 4 service aces. Libero Lizzie Tardieu led the defense with 15 digs. San Diego overtakes Gonzaga for second place in the conference, and improves to 13-4 overall (6-1 WCC). The Toreros will return to action on Saturday, October 14th when they host Portland.

San Diego lead the match in hitting percentage .230 – .192, kills 46-34, digs 45-43, aces 8-1, and assists 43 -33. Both teams collected 12 blocks on the match.

Gonzaga received a strong effort from Payton Mack who collected 10 kills on 20 errorless swings (.500) while also blocking 5 balls. Alyse Whitaker led the offense with 12 kills while libero Tiyana Hallums led the defense with 15 digs. The Zags suffered their first conference loss of the season and dropped to 11-8 overall (6-1 WCC). Gonzaga faces another tough task on Saturday, October 14th when they travel to Provo to take on #7 BYU.

Press Release: 

Courtesy of UC San Diego Athletics

SAN DIEGO, Calif. – The 18th-ranked Torero volleyball team (13-4, 6-1) gave Gonzaga (11-8, 6-1) their first conference loss of the season Thursday evening, sweeping the Bulldogs 3-0 inside the Jenny Craig Pavilion. Jayden Kennedy’s team-high 15 kills led the Toreros to a 25-18, 25-20, 25-21 win.

Aside from Kennedy’s 15 kills, Addie Picha had nine kills on a .615 hitting percentage while Lauren Fuller had eight. Kristen Gengenbacher had another double-double, dishing out 37 assists and collecting 13 digs. Lizzy Tardieu added a team-high 15 digs. As a team, the Toreros had a hitting percentage of .230 and held the Bulldogs to a .192 clip. USD had eight service aces with four coming from Gengenbacher.

In every set the Toreros built up a comfortable lead only to see the Bulldogs rally to make things interesting down the stretch. In the first set the Toreros were up 20-10 and then the Zags went on a 6-1 run to close the gap to five points (21-16).

In the second set, the Toreros were up 23-14, but couldn’t close the Zags out and they went on a 5-0 run before USD eventually won 25-20. Both teams struggled offensively in the third set. USD hit .109 and Gonzaga hit .132.

Gonzaga was led by Alyse Whitaker’s 12 kills and Payton Mack added 10. Tiyana Hallums had a team-high 15 digs.

The Toreros are back in action Saturday at noon when they host the Portland Pilots.

Press Release:

Courtesy of Gonzaga Athletics

SAN DIEGO, Calif.—The Gonzaga volleyball team saw its seven-match win streak snapped Thursday night, falling to No. 18 San Diego in three sets (25-18, 25-20, 25-21) inside Jenny Craig Pavilion in San Diego.

The Zags (11-8, 6-1 WCC) suffered their first defeat of the West Coast Conference season, falling into a tie for second place with the Toreros. Despite the loss, the Zags still have equaled their best start to a conference season through seven matches.

Gonzaga was paced by middle blockers Payton Mack and Alyse Whitaker Thursday night, who provided 22 of the Zags’ 34 kills and combined for a .465 attack percentage. Whitaker led the Zags with 12 kills – her eighth match in double-digits of the season – while Mack was two shy at 10. Mack was also involved in five of the Zags’ seven blocks while Whitaker added two.

Libero Tiyana Hallums also tallied 15 digs, tying for the match lead. The junior has reached double-digits in eight of the last nine matches.

The Toreros, ranked No. 18 in the nation by the American Volleyball Coaches Association, led Gonzaga in nearly every category, although the Zags kept close in digs (45-43) and pulled even in blocks (7.0-7.0). San Diego did tally a .230 attack percentage, 38 points higher that GU’s, and they served up eight aces in comparison to Gonzaga’s one.

“San Diego served really tough tonight,” said Gonzaga head coach Diane Nelson. “We haven’t been shaken up that much in serve receive. It was hard to get much going offensively.”

This was the Zags’ first match of the year against a ranked squad. There’s three more ranked foes left on the season, and the next one comes Saturday, Oct. 14 as the Zags take on No. 7 BYU. That contest will begin at 12:00 p.m. Pacific (1:00 p.m. Mountain) in Provo, Utah.