SANTA CLARA, Calif. – In the final throes of the 2014 season, the San Francisco volleyball team concluded its road schedule Thursday, falling to the Broncos 3-0 at the Leavey Center.

Offensively, Katarina Pilepic paced the Dons with nine kills on .500 hitting, and Oluoma Okaro finished with eight kills, second on the team. Kim Gutierrez, freshman libero, amassed 14 digs in the three-set match for USF. Kiara McCibben and Jurja Vlasic both finished with double-digit assist figures, and McKibben paved the way with 22 assists.

USF opened the first set with the point, a kill from Pilepic, and maintained the lead for the first half of the fame. With the Dons up 10-7 after a point from Valentina Zaloznik. The Broncos reeled off the next three point to knot the frame, and the score was again tied at 12-12 as Mary Shepherd took to the service line for Santa Clara. The Broncos went on to score the next three points to take a 15-12 advantage and force a USF timeout, before eventually winning the frame 25-18.

Similar in the second set, the Dons opened with a lead, and maintained that advantage for nearly the full frame. A kill by Anja Segota gave the Dons its largest lead at 16-12, and USF remained in front until a kill from Nikki Hess evened the score at 21-21. The Broncos went ahead after Taylor Milton made it 23-22, and the home team went into halftime with a 2-0 lead after the come-from-behind win in the second.

The Broncos opened the third set with the advantage, but the Dons were determined to fight back. Taylor Milton served up an ace to give Santa Clara a 17-12 advantage, but USF battled back for the tie at 20-20 after McKibben assisted on a point from Pilepic. The score was again knotted after Okaro's kill off the assist from Vlasic forced extra points in the frame at 24-all. Nikki Hess would give the Broncos the lead and Gigi Cresto served an ace on match point to complete the sweep.

Santa Clara, the third-best serving team in the NCAA, finished the match with six aces and outhit the Dons .349 to .220. Also big on the block, the Broncos finished with a 10.5 to 4.0 advantage. The Dons move to 12-17, and 5-12 West Coast Conference with the loss, while Santa Clara improves to 21-9 (11-6 WCC) on the season.

USF closes out the 2014 campaign Tuesday against Pacific as the Dons bid farewell and honor Zaloznik and Segota in a Senior Night match.

The contest is also part of a special Ladies Night Doubleheader. The Dons meet up with the Tigers at 5 p.m., and then the women's basketball team will take to the court following the match. Fans can receive discounted $5 tickets to both events in exchange for a non-perishable food item donation to the SF-Marin Food Bank.