Cristin Richards (Olympia, Wash.) was the lone bright spot for Seattle University, collecting 21 kills and a .419 hitting percentage during the match. Jordan Keller (Mukilteo, Wash.) again led the way at the net with four total blocks, Jamie Mellies (Henderson, Nev.) dished out 29 assists, and Emily Deleissegues (Aromas, Calif.) led the team from the back with 11 digs.
San Francisco (2-10) scored the first five points of the match, but Seattle U came back, using a kill and two service aces by Allison Farley (Happy Valley, Ore.) as well as back-to-back kills from Richards to pull into an 8-8 tie. After the Dons scored the next three points, the Redhawks went on an 8-2 run to go ahead, 16-13. Down 21-16, USF rallied by scoring nine of the final ten points to win the first set.
The momentum continued for the home team, as back-to-back service aces helped give the Dons an early 6-1 lead in the second set. Three straight points for the Redhawks late in the set cut USF's lead to four at 23-19, but consecutive kills from Sarah Mandala and Malina Terrell allowed the Dons to close out the second set.
Four kills by four different players allowed Seattle U to jump on top in the third set, 5-2, but back-to-back kills by Mandala helped USF close the gap, and the Dons would take the lead for good at 13-12 on consecutive attack errors by the Redhawks. San Francisco closed out the set and the match by outscoring Seattle U, 14-4, with a kill by Jordan Irish proving to be the final blow.
"Tonight we just didn't play to the full extent of our abilities and USF did. We are going to look at how we prepare so we can bring our A-game every night," head coach Shannon Ellis said.
Mandala led the Dons with 12 kills, while Hadley Simmons contributed 10 kills in 14 attempts for a .643 hitting percentage as well as four block assists. Joan Caloiaro played a solid all-around match, finishing with 26 assists, eight kills, a .500 hitting percentage, three service aces, and seven digs. Whitney Swain led all players with 15 defensive digs in the contest.
Seattle University (7-9) concludes the weekend trip Sunday, Sept. 26, with a match at Santa Clara University against the Broncos beginning at 1 p.m.