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USC Women's Volleyball Falls to No. 15 UCLA in First of Two Matchups

by usctrojans.com
Mar 19, 2021

Box Score | Highlights | Boxscore

LOS ANGELES – The USC women's volleyball team (3-8, 3-8 Pac-12) fell to 15th-ranked crosstown rival UCLA (12-5, 12-5) in four sets (25-15, 14-25, 25-20, 25-17) at Galen Center on Friday, March 19.
 
KEY PLAYERS

  • Sr. OH Brooke Botkin led all players with 15 kills (4e, 35att) and hit .314 with eight digs, one block, and a service ace.
  • So. MB Aleksandra Gryka contributed eight kills (5e, 17att, .176) with seven blocks (one solo).
  • Jr. OH Brooklyn Schirmer had seven kills (1e, 22att, .273) with two blocks and two service aces.
  • Jr. setter Raquel Lázaro put up 37 assists and had seven digs and a block.
  • For UCLA, Mac May led with 14 kills (4e, 35att, .286) seven digs, and three blocks. Emily Ryan added seven kills (2e, 15att, .333) and led all players with nine blocks. Iman Ndiaye had 11 kills (1e, 20att) and hit .500 with four blocks.

HOW IT HAPPENED

  • UCLA controlled the tempo in the first set and claimed a 25-15 win by putting up five blocks and holding the Trojans to a .061 hitting percentage. 
  • The Trojans turned the tables in the second frame and collected a 25-14 win by posting a .429 hitting percentage (14k, 2e, 28att). Botkin led with four kills and Emilia Weske and Gryka added three each in the win.
  • Despite falling behind early in the third, USC rallied to go ahead, 17-16. The Trojans hit .250 and got three kills apiece from Gryka and Candice Denny but UCLA ended the set on a 6-1 run to win, 25-20.
  • The Bruins jumped out to another early lead in the fourth set and fended off a Trojan attack fueled by six kills from Botkin. USC mounted a short comeback spurt to close within six at 22-16, but UCLA sealed the win with a 25-17 victory.

UP NEXT

  • USC goes to Westwood to take on the Bruins in a rematch on Sunday (March 21) at 4:30 p.m. PT at Pauley Pavilion. The match will be shown live on Pac-12 Network.

MATCH NOTES

  • USC fell to 59-56 all-time against UCLA and lost its third straight to the Bruins.
  • The Trojans played only their third home match of the season after having series against Stanford, Arizona State, and Washington State canceled due top COVID-19 protocols.

This season (2020-21), the Pac-12 plays a 22-match Conference-only schedule as its 2020 season, which began on Friday, Jan. 22, 2021. All volleyball competitions will be conducted in accordance with the Pac-12 COVID-19 Medical Advisory Committee health and safety recommendations and guidelines available at Pac-12.com/health.
 
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, Twitter, and Instagram.
 

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