University of San Francisco Athletics

SAN FRANCISCO — The final home weekend for the San Francisco volleyball team has arrived, and that means Senior Day festivities on Saturday for Lena Bondar and Marjolijn Oskam, as the Dons welcome Pacific Northwest foes Gonzaga and Portland, respectively, to War Memorial at Sobrato Center on Thursday and Saturday.
 
MATCH 24 INFORMATION
Date/Time: Tuesday, Nov. 1, 7 p.m.
Opponent: Gonzaga
Site: War Memorial at Sobrato Center
Tickets: https://bit.ly/2uJKvEL
Live video: https://bit.ly/2DdECU7
Live stats: https://bit.ly/2OXfx5W
 
MATCH 25 INFORMATION
Date/Time: Saturday, Nov. 3, Noon
Opponent: Portland
Site: War Memorial at Sobrato Center
Tickets: https://bit.ly/2uJKvEL
Live video: https://bit.ly/2OYuchf
Live stats: https://bit.ly/2zfWE3H
 
WEEKEND DIG
 
The Dons (8-15, 1-11 WCC) have lost 11 straight following their six-match winning streak at the beginning of September. But they have been competitive throughout, and especially recently. The Dons have won a set in three of their last four matches, and were within five points or less in four of the six sets they dropped last week.
 
Gonzaga (6-16, 3-8 WCC) comes to San Francisco having lost five straight and eight of its last 10. The Bulldogs got two victories in early October when it first played San Francisco and travel partner Santa Clara in Spokane. Sarah Penner is the Bulldogs' leading attacker with a team-high 242 kills – 120 more than the next best player – but she hits just .187. The Bulldogs have hit .172 as a team this season, with three of their five players who have at least 100 kills hitting .187 or lower.
 
Portland (16-7, 4-7 WCC) has lost three of their last four matches, the lone win a sweep over rival Gonzaga. That followed a three-match win streak that included the Dons in San Francisco on Oct. 4. Senior Reghan Pukis leads the Pilots with 3.33 kills per set. The Pilots have three players over the 200-kills mark with Pukis (276), Shayla Hoeft (229) and Izzy Guzik (206).
 
THAT SECOND SET'S A DOOSEY
Win or lose, the Dons have played close second sets all season long, either to push for a 1-1 match score or to go up 2-0. 15 of the 23 second sets the Dons have played have been decided by five points or less, including four of those by the minimum two points. Extend that to 25-19 (six points) and it's 18 of 23 this season.
 
COMING UP
 
San Francisco begins a season-ending four-match road trip next week starting at the two defending co-WCC champions, San Diego (Nov. 8) and No. 1-ranked BYU (Nov. 10). Fans can find all live coverage links on USFDons.com.