University of San Francisco Athletics

LARKSPUR, Calif. – The Dons made the most of their long day under the warm spring sun in Marin County, defeating San Jose State and Saint Mary's in the USF Invitational held at Piper Park in Larkspur.

After sweeping their way to a 5-0 win over San Jose State in their morning match, the Dons outlasted Saint Mary's, 3-2 in a thrilling match that gave USF its first-ever sand victory over the Gaels.

"It was a long day that got off to a good start with a win over San Jose State and we knew the Saint Mary's match would be a fight to the end," said USF head coach Gilad Doron. "To be able to beat a top-10 team like Saint Mary's is great for our young program."

USF (4-2) had little trouble dispatching San Jose State in the morning match.

The No. 1 team of Valentina Zaloznik and Courtney Sabahi posted a three-set victory over Bre Moreland Nadyala Gama to give the Dons a 1-0 lead in the match. The USF duo cruised to a 21-12 victory in game one, only to see Moreland and Gama even the match with a 23-21 victory in game two. USF jumped out to a 10-6 lead in the third and deciding game before shutting the door with a 15-8 victory. Zaloznik had 27 kills while Sabahi contributed six aces.

The Dons took a 2-0 lead in the match when the No. 3 team of Oluoma Okaro and Jessica Keenan toughed out a hard fought three-game win over the tandem of Summer Avery and Julie Sam, 23-21, 18-21 and 15-13. Game three was tied at 12-12 before the Dons won three of the last four points to take the game and match. Okaro finished the game with 17 kills.

The No. 4 team of Katarina Pilepic and Kiara McKibben closed out the match with a straight game, 21-16, 21-16 victory over Sara Hibbs and Yavianliz Rosado. The Dons held a 15-13 lead in game one and went on a 6-3 run to close out the Spartans in the first game. The Dons built leads of 12-9 and 16-11 in game two before closing out the match, 21-16 to clinch the victory.

The No. 5 team of Inbar Vinarksky and Anja Segota swept past Breann Robinson and Mayte-Sanchez Sole Miranda, 21-13 and 21-15.

USF's No. 2 unit of Jessica Gaffney and Sara Staengle completed the sweep with a 21-16, 21-15 victory over Ali Meehan and Jaime Hiral,

Following the San Jose State match, the Dons had three hours to prepare for a Saint Mary's team that was ranked eighth nationally in the preseason rankings.

USF got off to a quick start, as the team of Vinarksy and Segota posted an easy 21-2, 21-10 victory over Hannah Liserra and Nicole Singh. The Dons duo bolted out to a 17-1 lead and never looked back in game one and jumped out to a 14-6 lead in game two before closing out the match.

The Pilepic-McKibben duo dropped the first game to Maegan Conroy and Madi Wilkerson at No. 4 before rallying for a 2-1 victory to give the Dons a 2-0 lead in the match. The tightly contest match saw the USF team squander a 16-13 lead to lose game one, 21-18. The Dons controlled game two and evened the match with a 21-17 victory. Pilepic and McKibben seemed to be cruising in game three, bolting out to a 13-6 lead. However, the Gaels turned the momentum and reeled off seven straight points to tie the game at 13. With the match ied at 15 all, a Gael service error gave USF a 16-15 advantage before McKibben ended the match with a kill near the back line to give the Dons a 2-0 lead in the match.

Saint Mary's drew even in the match, picking up straight game wins at the No. 3 and No. 1 positions.

Mileva Popovic and Mary Hernandez downed the team of Okaro and Keenan, 21-18 and 21-19 to get the Gaels on the board.

Saint Mary's evened the match at 2-2 when the Gaels top team of Samantha Tinsley and Dalas Dodd scored a convincing victory over Zaloznik and Sabahi, 21-14 and 21-12.

All eyes then turned to the match between the No. 2 teams of Gaffney and Staengle and Clare Powers and Alexis Salmons. After capturing game one 21-19, the Dons tandem built a 13-10 lead in game two and won eight of the final 10 points to win the match, 21-15, clinching the match for the Dons.

Staengle had 12 kills while Gaffney added 11. Steangle also had 16 digs and six service aces.

"Jessica and Sara might be the two toughest competitors out there," said Doron. "They seem to feed off each other and they make big plays. Once they get settled, it's tough to get a run on them, which makes them tough to beat."

USF will return to action March 28 at the Santa Cruz Invitational.

Match Results

USF (5) vs. San Jose State (0)

1. Zaloznik-Sabahi d. Morelan-Gama, 21-12, 21-23, 15-8

2. Gaffney-Steangle d. Meehan-Hiral, 21-16, 21-15

3. Okaro-Keenan d. Avery-Sam, 23-21, 18-21, 15-13

4. Pilipec-McKibben d. Hibbs-Rosado, 21-16, 21-16

5. Vinarsky-Segota d. Robinson-Miranda, 21-13, 21-15

Order of finish: 1-3-4-5-2

USF (3) vs. Saint Mary's (2)

1. Tinsley-Dodd (SMC) d. Zaloznik-Sabahi, 21-14, 21-12

2. Gaffney-Steangle (USF) d. Powers-Salmons, 21-19, 21-15

3. Mi. Popvic-Hernandez (SMC) d. Okaro-Keenan, 21-18, 21-19

4. Pilipec-McKibben (USF) d. Conroy-Wilkerson, 18-21, 21-17, 17-15

5. Vinarsky-Segota (USF) d. Liserra-Singh, 21-2, 21-10

Order of finish: 5-4-3-1-2