No. 14 USC Slips Past CU

BOULDER, Colo. — The University of Colorado women's volleyball team fell to No.14-ranked University of Southern California Sunday afternoon in the CU Events Center by way of a five-set (18-25, 27-25, 19-25, 25-21, 10-15) loss. The Buffs will go on the road next weekend to face off with Washington and Washington State on Friday and Sunday, respectfully.

Despite a season-high 30 attack errors by the team, the Buffs held their own against a Trojan team with numerous top-25 wins this season. The Buffs shook off a tough first-set defeat to steal the second set after USC hit set-point. The third set was another one that slipped away from CU with a large run, with another dominant return in the fourth set to tie it up and force the fifth. The Buffs were never able to find the lead in the fifth set, ultimately falling to a USC team that was able to sideout well in the fifth to escape with the win.

"I thought it was probably an exciting match to watch from the sideline," said coach Mahoney. "There was a lot of offense. I thought both teams played very well. Proud of the fight that we had after that set to get back into the match and get to a fifth set. USC has a lot of weapons and they definitely used them today. Towards the end we couldn't defend the way we needed to, but again I am proud of the way we played and if you look at this team today compared to four weeks ago I think we are getting better every timeout and we have some more ceiling to get to by the end of the season."

Alexa Smith was the driving force for the Buffs all afternoon. The senior finished with 18 kills, five of which came in the fifth set. She also had 15 digs and three blocks, accounting for her second 20-point performance of the season. She was joined by Anyse Smith who had several dominant kills to keep the Buffs in sets late. Naghede Abu also added a dozen kills.

Sophomore Brynna DeLuzio had a solid game at setter, leading the team with 24 assists while also posting a pair of aces and tying her career-high in digs with 15. Freshman Jenna Ewert also had 20 assists.

The team led the match with nine and a half blocks up front. Abu and Danielle Price notched four block assists each, while both Smiths finished with three total blocks. Justine Spann added a dozen digs from the backrow to go with both Smith and DeLuzio's 15.

Hitting was a struggle for the Buffs, with the team finishing with .178 hitting percentage. Colorado was only able to eclipse .200 as a team in one set when they hit .314 in the fourth. In the third set CU hit just .033 and had only nine kills.

Another large factor to the outcome was USC's ability to sideout and limit errors. The Trojans had a sideout percentage of more than 70 in the first and last sets. Southern California also committed three or less attack errors in the first, second and last set, with the final set only committing a single error. The Trojan's Khalia Lanier led the match with 21 kills, while middle Jasmine Gross had 17 kills and only a single error for a .615 hitting percentage.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

SET 1: The Trojans jumped out to a quick 5-2 lead, with the Buffs committing a quick pair of service errors. The Buffs got back into it, bringing it within one at 9-8. Colorado tied it up at 10 apiece. After a CU challenge the Trojans took four-straight points and force a timeout from the Buffs. The break wouldn't help, as USC put down another pair of points before CU could answer. The Trojans were the first to hit 20 points at 20-13. The Buffs rallied to 21-17, but attack errors continued to haunt the team with nine already. USC hit set-point at 24-18, finishing the set one point later. CU committed nine attack errors in the set.

SET 2: The Buffs came out firing with a quick three-point run. USC tied it up at five after a pair of errors from CU. After USC took the lead, coach Mahoney called timeout to talk things over. The teams traded leads and ties to a 16-14 CU lead and a USC timeout. Trojan middle Jasmine Gross was personally handling the Buffs with nine kills and a .900 hitting percentage, while Alexa Smith had seven kills. CU ran off another pair of points to take a four-point lead, then USC responded with a pair of points themselves. Justine Spann put down her second ace of the set and forced another USC timeout with CU leading 20-16. Following an impressive back-and-forth rally that featured numerous saves and ended with a Lauren Dorrell kill, CU took a 21-17 lead and was staring down tying the match. The Trojans rallied three consecutive points to force a CU timeout. The run continued following a USC block, reaching a tie at 21 apiece. USC retook the lead at 23-22, then hit set-point with an ace. A service error kept hope alive for the Buffs, and consecutive Anyse Smith kills tied it up at 24 apiece and 25 apiece. An overpass led to a Spann kill and set-point, and the set was finished with a set-error by USC. Brynna DeLuzio hit her first double-double with 10 assists and digs.

SET 3: After taking the first pair of points, CU let up five-straight points. The Buffs rallied back to a 6-5 deficit, tying it up at seven apiece. The teams traded ties and leads to a 12-10 USC lead. After trailing 15-11, coach Mahoney called timeout. CU turned back a pair of USC attacks to bring the score to 16-14. Anyse Smith put down a pair of kills to bring CU within one, 18-17. The Trojans extended their lead to 20-17, forcing a CU timeout. USC rallied to set-point at 24-19, finishing the set on the next point. The Buffs hit just .033 in the third set, with 23 attack errors in the match.

SET 4: Facing elimination the Buffs came out firing to a 5-2 lead. The lead was pushed to 7-3 before USC had enough and called timeout. The teams traded points to a 10-6 lead for the Buffs. Colorado ran to a 13-7 lead, forcing USC to call another timeout. The Buffs ran to a 17-9 lead, the largest of the match. USC fired off a quick four point-run, turning into a CU timeout. The run continued all the way to 17-15 before Anyse Smith finished off the six-point run and put CU back on track. The Buffs pushed to 20-15, then the Trojans responded to make the score 22-18. USC put down four kills before Naghede Abu would sideout for the Buffs at 23-20. Buffs hit set-point and believed to have taken the set before an overturned ref call made it 24-21. CU wouldn't be phased and finished off the set on the next rally.

SET 5: USC came out with the first three points before Alexa Smith put down a huge kill. Smith would put down another pair of kills to tie up the set. The Trojans hit the eight-point side switch with an 8-5 lead. USC would push it to 10-5 before the Buffs found a response with Danielle Price. The teams traded points to 12-9, but USC continued to sideout and push to 15. The Trojans closed it out at 15-10, committing only a single error in the set.

WHATS NEXT: The Buffs return to Seattle for the second time this season. Colorado will face No.13 Washington on Friday evening, then travel to Pullman to take on No.22 Washington State.

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Team Stats

Alexa Smith

Anyse Smith

Naghede Abu

Justine Spann

Players Mentioned

Naghede Abu

Brynna DeLuzio

Lauren Dorrell

Jenna Ewert

Danielle Price

Alexa Smith

Anyse Smith

Justine Spann

Players Mentioned

Naghede Abu

Brynna DeLuzio

Lauren Dorrell

Jenna Ewert

Danielle Price

Alexa Smith

Anyse Smith

Justine Spann