Box Scores
San Bernardino, CA – The Toros' upset hopes of No. 20 Seattle Pacific University fell short on day two of the Coyote Classic as CSUDH lost in four (25-30, 13-30, 30-26, 28-30) after being swept (19-30, 23-30, 22-30) by Regis University in the first match of the day. The losses leave CSUDH still searching for its first win of the season at 0-4.
In game one against the Rangers, the Toros had all they could handle as RU sprinted out to a 6-2 lead behind the serving of Kristin Thompson.
Junior Randi Johnson took a set from Tiffany Bull and blasted down a putaway to end the run, but the Rangers found their rhythm and built a 10-5 lead, slowly extending their lead to 19-12.
Back-to-back kills by Lauren Wells and a service ace by Johnson cut the deficit to just three at 19-16, but the Rangers again regrouped and outscored the Toros 11-3 to finish game one.
The Toros slowed down the RU offense in games two and three, but followed the pattern of game one with the Rangers building a small lead and the Toros chipping away, but never able to overcome the deficit as RU completed the sweep.
Over all the Ranger offense was just too much for the Toro defense to handle as RU hit .368 as a team, including a blistering .517 in game one, while holding CSUDH to a team attack percentage of .081.
Sophia Lopes garnered game-high honors with 14 kills while Wells chipped in eight kills in the effort.
In the final match of the Coyote Classic the Toros kept pace with the nationally-ranked Falcons as the two teams were locked in the opening game at 23-23 after a kill by Lopes.
SPU countered with three points on a pair of CSUDH attacking errors and kill by Robin De Jong to push its lead to 26-23, and the Toros could not match the Falcons as SPU closed out the 30-25 game one win.
Nikki Osuna served 12 consecutive balls to begin game two as SPU quickly built a 12-0 lead, which CSUDH could never recover from in falling two games to none in the match.
The Toros shot out to a 7-3 to start game three, but SPU regrouped and tied the game at 9-9 on a CSUDH attacking error.
The Toros stepped up their game against the Falcons, matching them point for point, knotting SPU at 25-25.
Kayleigh Spratt stepped behind the service line and, after three Falcon attack errors, dropped an ace to give CSUDH a 29-25 lead, and after an SPU side out, Lopes took a set from Spratt and ended the match to shock the nationally-ranked Falcons.
SPU looked to end things quickly in game four by jumping out to a 13-5 lead, but the Toros dug their collective hoofs into the ground and made a stand, eventually knotting the game at 25-25.
After three more ties, SPU's Rachel Biornstad gave the Falcons their 29th point with a kill, and an ensuing Toro ball handling error ended the match and any hopes of a Toro upset.
Lopes led the offense with her third consecutive double-digit performance with 15 kills, while Wellsadded her second double-double of the season with 10 kills and 10 digs. Freshman Ashley Clark chipped in nine kills and eight digs and Spratt added her own double-double of 32 assists and 10 digs in the effort.
The Toros remain on the road next week, heading north to compete in the Western Washington Tournament where they face Western Oregon and No. 23 Western Washington on Friday, and Seattle University and Saint Martin's University on Saturday. CSUDH kicks off its home schedule on Wednesday, September 5, when the Toros host No. 17 Cal State L.A. at 7:00 pm in the Torodome.
