FRESNO, Calif. — The San Francisco women's volleyball team played another competitive match Saturday at the Fresno State Invitational, coming from behind multiple times to put host Fresno State on the ropes, but it was the Bulldogs who finally outlasted the Dons in a five-set battle at the Save Mart Center, winning 3-2 (25-22, 14-25, 25-21, 25-27, 15-13).
 
Kathya Garcia posted her third straight double-double with a match- and season-high 22 kills to go with 17 digs. The Dons had three players with double-digit kills. Sophie Sydenham – who was named to the all-tournament team – had 16 kills while hitting .361. Emily Zinger totaled 12 kills with a .310 hitting percentage. USF (2-4) outhit Fresno State (6-1), .226 to .211.
 
Down 2-1 in the match, the Dons looked to be already heading for a fifth set with a 24-21 lead. But the Bulldogs scored four straight points to get to a 25-24 match point. That's where USF dug in and made sure to get to a fifth and deciding set. Two kills by Sydenham and another by Garcia gave the Dons three straight points and a 27-25 win to force a fifth.
 
In the fifth, the Dons held several leads at 5-3 and 8-6 at the court switch. The latest lead they held was 12-11, but back-to-back Fresno State kills and a block gave them match point at 14-12. Garcia gave the Dons another shot with a kill to make it 14-13, but the Bulldogs wrapped up the win with a kill from Haile Watson. Watson hit .478 with 13 kills.
 
The Dons will debut at home with two matches in War Memorial at the Sobrato Center on Sept. Friday and Saturday. San Francisco hosts Hofstra at 6 p.m. on Friday, then takes on Southern Utah at 7 p.m. on Saturday. USF will also host a neutral site match between the Pride and Thunderbirds at 11 a.m. on Saturday.