SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. - Returning home to The Hilltop, the University of San Francisco volleyball team (0-21, 0-13) battled Santa Clara (9-14, 5-8) on Friday evening at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center, but ultimately fell to the Broncos, 3-1.
 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 

• Although the Broncos would record the first two points of the match to begin set one, the Dons quickly evened the score at two follow Letizia Aquilino's first career kill and an attack error from Santa Clara. Shortly thereafter, the Broncos used a 3-0 run to retake the lead 5-2, but the Dons would hang through the remainder of the set. Following a timely kills from Shiya Richardson and Aquilino, USF had trimmed their deficit to just one, 20-19. Buckling down, the Broncos responded by closing out the set on a 5-3 run to secure the first match point, 25-22.
• Moving into set two, the two teams exchanged points to begin as the Dons jumped on top, 8-6, following a service ace from Brunna Correa and another kill from Richardson. However, Santa Clara answered the call once again, this time rallying off a 10-2 stretch to jump in front, 14-9. Battling until the final whistle, the Dons aimed to climb back, but were unable to find the momentum they needed as the Broncos hung on to secure set two, 25-17.
• Digging deep, the Dons powered through to take an early advantage, 5-2, in set three following kills from Aquilino and Orsula Staka. Riding this energy, USF would use the strength of 16 kills in set three to retain their advantage as Aylen Ayub impressed with 13 assists during the set. Hammering down the deciding point, Taylor Schein closed out the action with a kill as the Dons secured set three, 25-21, for their first set win since Oct. 16 at Portland.
• Wasting no time, Santa Clara opened set four with a 7-1 run to gain the early advantage over the Dons. Similar to set two, the Broncos then used another 10-2 stretch to widen the gap, 20-9. Not going down without a fight, USF fought back with consecutive kills from Richardson, but Santa Clara would ultimately respond with two kills of their own to secure the set point, 25-16, and the match, 3-1.

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

• Starting at outside hitter for the first time after lining up at libero in all of her previous appearances, Aquilino tallied the first kills of her collegiate career on Friday night as she finished with 14 kills, good for second on the team. Notably, her two service aces led the Dons. Overall, she was also just one dig shy of a double-double as she finished with nine total digs on the evening.
• For Richardson, the freshman logged her fourth double-double performance of the season as she posted 16 kills and 13 digs against the Broncos.
• Starting for the first time at USF, Sara Denham recorded a new career-high with a team-leading 17 digs while also adding a career-high five assists. 

UP NEXT:
USF will continue their final home stand of the regular season as the Dons are set to host Portland next Thursday, Nov. 11 at 5:00 pm. Live streaming and live stats 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