No. 20 USC Women's Volleyball Throw Block Party in Win Over Kansas State - USC Athletics (2024)

OMAHA, Neb. –The No. 20-ranked USC women's volleyball team (3-1) collected a four-set win (25-21, 16-25, 27-25, 25-22) over Kansas State (1-3) in the second match of the Creighton Classic at D.J. Sokol Arena on Friday, Sept. 6.

KEY PLAYERS

• Sr. SMia Tuanigaput up 40 assists to set the Trojans to .209 hitting and had a season-high 16 digs to log her first double-double of the year, the 29th of her career. Tuaniga also totaled seven blocks, five kills, and had a service ace.
• Jr. LIBGala Trubintled all players with 17 digs to reach double-digit digs for the 52nd time in her career. She also had seven assists and one of the Trojans' six service aces.
• Gr. OHAlly Batenhorstposted her second double-double of the season—fourth of her career—with 14 kills and a career-high 15 digs. She also matched her career mark with seven blocks.
• Redshirt So. OPPAdonia Faumuinascored 10 kills (3e, 27att, .259) with five digs and four blocks (one solo).
• So. OHLondon Wijayled the team with 15 kills (4e, 37att) and hit .297 to go with 11 digs for her third double-double of the season and the ninth of her career. She also added a service ace and had two blocks.
• Fr. MBFavor Anyanwuled all players with nine blocks (one solo) and added four kills and a dig.
• Redshirt Fr. MBLeah Fordhad six kills (1e, 9att) to hit .556 and a career-high five blocks.
• For the Wildcats, Aliyah Carter led the offense with 17 kills and had a double-double with 13 digs. Liz Gregorski had 11 kills. Ella Larkin posted 16 digs while setter Izzi Szulczewski had 41 assists, 13 digs, and five kills.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Trojans got 11 kills from their left-side pins as Wijay racked up seven and Batenhorst had four in a 25-21 first-set win. USC hit .256 and used 16 digs and 4.5 blocks to help hold the Wildcats to a .220 hitting rate. Down three points at 19-16, the Women of Troy ripped through a 7-0 run to acquire their four-point cushion and then claimed set point on a roll-shot kill by Batenhorst.
• Kansas State outscored the Trojans, 10-2, to close out a 25-16 win in the second set. USC was unable to adjust to the Wildcats' floor defense, which put up 24 digs, to help hold the Trojans to a .000 hitting rate with eight kills on 45 swings. Both teams logged four blocks apiece, but KSU hit .140 with 12 kills in the win.
• A 10-5 Kansas State lead didn't slow the Trojans, who collected eight blocks including the payoff block from Anyanwu to sew up a 27-25 win in the third. USC collected 21 digs in set three and got eight of those from Tuaniga. Batenhorst poured in five kills, had five digs, and got in on three blocks. In all, the Trojan defense held Kansas State to a .183 hitting rate despite a 17-kill frame from the Wildcats.
• The Trojans added three more blocks in the fourth set and hit .343 with 16 kills (4e) on 35 attacks. Trubint tallied five of USC's 13 digs to help hold the Wildcats to a .177 hitting rate. Faumuina racked up four more kills and helped the Trojans run out to a 7-1 lead to open the frame. Kansas State mounted a comeback late in the set, but USC held off the Wildcats to close out the set, 25-22, for the match victory.

UP NEXT

• The Women of Troy host third-ranked Pittsburgh at Galen Center for their home opener on Wednesday, Sept. 11. The match will be shown live on Big Ten Network with first serve set for 6 p.m. PT. The Trojans' home opener is also a Kids Corner Match. All kids under the age of 18 do not pay admission and may redeem free tickets at the box office on the day of the match. Additionally, the first 1,000 fans through the doors receive a free reversible USC bucket hat.

MATCH NOTES

• USC improved to 3-0 all-time against Kansas State and was facing the Wildcats for the first time since 2004.
• The Trojans go to 7-7 in the state of Nebraska and improved to 3-7 in the city of Omaha.
• USC's 19.5 blocks was the highest single-match total since it had 21.0 at Arizona State (Nov. 27) in 2019.

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.