Sept. 18, 2007
SAN DIEGO - In its second straight match against a nationally-ranked opponent, San Diego State dropped a four-game contest to the 15th-ranked San Diego Toreros Tuesday night at USD's Jenny Craig Pavilion. USD reaffirmed its ranking with a 30-22, 30-32, 30-18, 32-30 victory over the visiting Aztecs.
With the loss, SDSU saw its record fall to 9-4 while the Toreros improved to 8-4. All four of USD's losses have come at the hands of teams ranked in the top 25.
Sophomore Stephanie Darnall led the Aztecs with 14 kills, 14 digs and three service aces as she notched her seventh double-double of the season. Lindsey Mahan added 13 kills and five blocks while freshman Lauren Salisbury finished with eight kills and five blocks.
Senior Libero Aime Cordeiro recorded 30 digs and is now just 18 shy of setting a new San Diego State record.
USD's Amy DeGroot led all players with 17 kills and added 16 digs. Ali Troost joined DeGroot in double figures in kills with 17 while Laurel Abrahamson added 14.
The opening game was a tale of big runs by each team. With the score tied at 13-13, the Toreros scored eight of the next nine to take a 21-14 lead. Not to be outdone, SDSU fought back, winning six straight points to close to within 21-20. However, after the teams traded scores, USD went on an eight point run to virtually close out the contest. It marked just the second time in 13 matches this season that San Diego State dropped an opening game.
The second contest saw a spirited late comeback by SDSU thwart a pair of scoring runs by the Toreros. After San Diego State came out and took a 10-4 lead, USD rallied to knot the score at 11-11. After the side traded three points apiece, the Toreros scored six of the next seven to open a 20-15 advantage.
The Aztecs rallied to tie the game at 23-all, but soon found themselves down by three points at 28-25. A kill by Salisbury and a pair of hitting USD errors tied the game once again at 28-28. After four alternating points, SDSU took a 31-30 lead on a block by Sydney De Turk and Lauren Salisbury, then closed out the game on a solo block by De Turk.
Game three saw the USD offense dominate over the final two-thirds of the contest. After taking an 11-9 lead, the home side scored 12 of the next 15 points to jump out to a 23-12 advantage. Of the three points scored by SDSU over that span, two came courtesy of Torero service errors. The teams played evenly the rest of the way, but it was too late for SDSU as USD took the 12-point win and a two-games-to-one lead in the match.
In the fourth game, the Aztecs trailed by a point or two most of the way, then fell behind by four at 25-21. They then put together a rally, scoring seven of the next eight to take a 28-26 lead. However, SDSU was unable to put the game away. Trailing by a point at 30-29, USD got kills from Troost and Erin Wiskar followed by a match-winning service ace from Andrea Csasz.
Up next for San Diego State is a home match against MWC-leading UNLV Rebels on Friday (Sept. 21) at 7:00 p.m. in Peterson Gym.