PORTLAND, Ore. – Concluding their three-match road trip with one final stop on The Bluff, the University of San Francisco volleyball team (0-16, 0-8) battled until the final whistle against Portland (5-12, 2-6) on Saturday afternoon, but ultimately fell to the Pilots, 3-2, at the Chiles Center.
 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

• In a back-and-forth affair to begin, the Pilots jumped out to an early advantage over the Dons, but USF remained in striking distance before they took their first lead, 21-19, on a 4-0 run in the closing moments of the first set. Flexing her muscle, Shyia Richardson rallied off three consecutive kills down the stretch to keep the Dons in front as USF as USF hung on to secure their first set win since Sept. 28 at Pacific, 25-23. Notably, Richardson was just one kill shy of double figures following the first set as she recorded nine kills to lead both teams.
• Aiming to ride their momentum, Orsula Staka and Lana Kutakhina notched back-to-back kills to open the second set as the Dons remained on top early, 3-1. Hitting their stride, USF would go on an impressive 7-0 run to extend their advantage to 10-3, which included kills from Staka and Richardson. Finding their rhythm, the Dons did not encounter much pushback from the Pilots in the moments to follow as USF outscored Portland 9-3 to secure the set win, 25-12, and take a 2-0 lead in the match.
• Moving into the third set, the teams continued to exchange fire and trade points, but the Pilots buckled down to respond on their home court. Although Richardson would bring the Dons to within just one point, 23-22, Portland flipped the script on USF by using a 4-2 run of their own to secure the set point, 25-22.
• Following a kill from Aylen Ayub that put the Dons on top 4-1 to begin the fourth set, USF widened the gap just a few points later after a Katie Wagstaff kill pushed the score to 17-11 in favor of the Dons. Unfortunately, Portland answered yet again, this time recording an 8-0 run to jump back in front, 19-17. Making one last attempt to climb back, Staka tallied another kill to cut the deficit to three in set's final points, but the Pilots would hang on to even the match at two, 25-21.
• Coming down to a fifth set, Portland continued to defend their home floor as they quickly jumped out to a 13-4 advantage. Showing their grit on the road, the Dons responded by rallying off a 5-1 run to trim their deficit to five, 14-9. Falling just short, the Pilots then secured the set win, 15-9, after a kill from Jayde Harris that also gave Portland the match victory, 3-2. 

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

• Impressively, three Dons registered new career-highs in kills against the Pilots: Richardson (16), Staka (15) and Kutakhina (9). 
• For Staka, the Croatian also tied her season-high in blocks with four while Kutakhina also set multiple new career-highs with 4 service aces and 13 overall points.
• Notably, Ayub tallied new season-highs with 46 assists and 2 blocks on Saturday. Defensively, her 12 digs were also good for the team lead.

UP NEXT:
USF will return home to The Hilltop and turn their attention to Saint Mary's as they are set to host the Gaels on Thursday, Oct. 21 at 7:00 pm. Live streaming and live statistics will be available via the team's schedule page.
 
FOLLOW US:
For more information and updates on the University of San Francisco volleyball program, be sure to follow the Dons on Twitter @USFDonsVB, @USFDonsVB on Instagram and @USFDonsVball on Facebook.