TUCSON, Ariz. – The Wildcats lost to USC in five sets (26-24, 12-25, 20-25, 25-20, 9-15) on Sunday afternoon in McKale Center.
Arizona’s trio of pins tallied 10 or more kills each for the second-straight game. Jordan Wilson led the offense with 20 kills. Sofia Maldonado Diaz followed with 16 kills and Jaelyn Hodge had 12 kills.
The Wildcats’ defense out-blocked the Trojans, 8.0-7.0. Hodge and Journey Tucker each had three blocks for Arizona.
Arizona won the first set, 26-24, after falling behind early in the set. The Wildcats had a .314 hitting percentage and Wilson totaled six kills while Maldonado Diaz and Nicole Briggs each had four kills in the opening set. Arizona fell behind 9-16 and strung together runs to take the lead and win the set in extra points.
The Trojans won the second set, 12-25. Arizona’s offense couldn’t find a rhythm in the second set, hitting .000 on eight kills. USC came out strong in the second set, hitting .500 and serving two aces to even the match.
The Wildcats lost Set 3, 20-25, to fall behind 1-2 in the match. Despite Arizona hitting .406 and Hodge tallying six kills, the Wildcats couldn’t overcome the Trojans who hit .429 and had two aces. Wilson had four kills and Maldonado Diaz recorded three kills in the set.
Arizona won the fourth set, 25-20, to force a fifth set. The Wildcats’ defense shined in the fourth set, totaling four blocks…
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