San Diego's win avenged its only conference loss this season against the BYU Cougars
PROVO, Utah – Kristen Gengenbacher racked up 55 assists to help lead No. 18 San Diego to a 3-1 victory at No. 8 BYU on Friday night at Smith Fieldhouse.
Gengenbacher was in command all night and helped the Toreros (17-4, 10-1 WCC) avenge its only conference loss this season against the Cougars (21-2, 10-1 WCC). The teams are now tied atop the conference leaderboard.
MORE: Oregon State stuns No. 12 Utah in four sets
USD extended its winning-streak to seven matches and has won 13 of its past 14 contests.
The 18th ranked @USDVolleyball takes down the 8th ranked @BYUwvolleyball in 4 sets. @NCAAVolleyball #BYUWVB #BYU #USDtoreros pic.twitter.com/eQXWrFJNFN
— BYUtv Sports (@byutvsports) October 28, 2017
USD hit .299 on the night and was led by Jayden Kennedy with 18 kills. Addie Picha continued to be one of the Toreros most efficient hitters, leading the team with a .476 hitting percentage that included 11 kills.
Roxie Wiblin had a quality night, producing 15 kills and a .323 hitting percentage. She also chipped in 11 digs. Lizzy Tardieu paced the Toreros with 19 digs and provided eight assists.
MORE: Washington State upsets UCLA in five-set thriller
The match started as a back-and-forth affair that featured 12 ties in the first set and 14 in the second. After taking a 2-1 set lead, the Toreros delivered one of its most dominating performances of the season to take the fourth set, 25-16, and secure the victory.
USD caught fire early, jumping out to a 7-2 lead in the first set. The Cougars settled in eventually and the sides were separated by two points or less throughout the set. With the score tied 21-21, the Toreros went on a 4-0 run to take the early advantage.
Leaving Provo with a top-10 win. #SanDiego #Toreros pic.twitter.com/IFNkZNPzCy
— USD Volleyball (@USDVolleyball) October 28, 2017
USD nearly rallied back from a 24-20 deficit in the second set but was unable to complete the comeback and fell to the Cougars, 25-23, to level the match at 1-1.
The Toreros jumped out to a 7-2 lead after the break, led by three kills by Kennedy during that span, and extended that lead to 20-13. The Cougars battled back and closed the gap to 24-22 but Wiblin ended the set with a kill to put the Toreros up, 2-1.
Down 12-11 in the fourth set, the Toreros went on a dominating 14-4 run to take the final set and seal the victory, 25-16. USD finished the match with a 4-0 rally.
The Toreros will look to continue its momentum next weekend when they return home to play host to Saint Mary’s and Pacific.
