SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco volleyball team continued its ascension on Thursday night, earning its first West Coast Conference win in three seasons with its sixth straight victory in a 3-0 (25-22, 25-16, 25-15) sweep over longtime rival Santa Clara in War Memorial Gym at Sobrato Center.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The first set was the closest, with six ties and two lead changes. Neither team led by more than three points until the very end, when San Francisco (8-4, 1-0 WCC) took a 22-18 advantage off a block from Katie Wagstaff and Emily Zinger.
   
• That largest lead of the set was part of a 5-0 run by the Dons that turned a one-point score into set point for them at 24-18. But even then, Santa Clara (5-8, 0-1 WCC) went on its own 4-0 sprint to come within 24-22 before USF finished it off to take a 1-0 match lead.
   
• The Dons hit .448 in that first set with just one attack error. Meanwhile, the defense held the Broncos to .062 hitting on 10 errors. Santa Clara would hit just .108 in the match – the fifth straight time USF has held an opponent to below .200 hitting and seventh time overall in 2018.
   
• The second and third sets went much smoother for San Francisco. USF never trailed in set two after starting on a 7-2 run. The Dons would build their lead to 14-6 with four straight points midway through and got to as high as 20-11 before finishing the 25-16 set win for a 2-0 match lead. Santa Clara started the third set on a 4-1 run, but the Dons answered with seven straight points – including two kills and a block from Kathya Garcia that helped them go ahead for good en route to a 25-15 match-clinching set victory.

NUMBERS TO KNOW

• .404: The Dons hit .404 as a team Thursday. It was the team's best hitting performance in a match in almost exactly three years. The team hit .417 versus Cal State Fullerton on Sept. 19, 2015, at War Memorial Gym.
• 8 and 7: Kate Ashman nearly had a double-double with eight kills and a match-high seven blocks. She hit .583 on the night with just one error in 12 swings.
• 10: The Dons spread out their attack so much Thursday that they only needed one player with double-figure kills. That was Garcia with 10, logging her ninth double-digit kills match of the season.

COACH LAVRISHA QUOTE

• "We got over a few errors early and were solid to win in three. Kathya Garcia was a great stabilizer and we scored big with our middles. It's a tribute to our team unity."

COMING UP

• The Dons rest on Saturday before a busy week of WCC play. The Dons travel across the Bay to face Saint Mary's on Tuesday. They then return home to host two home matches against Southern California foes. Pepperdine comes to War Memorial at Sobrato Center on Thursday, then Loyola Marymount visits on Sept. 29.