Carson, CA --- Freshman Madison Horsley earned her first career double-double of 12 kills and 10 digs, but visiting Grand Canyon earned a hard-fought 25-20, 22-25, 25-17, 18-25, 15-11 win Saturday night in the Torodome, keeping the Toros searching for their first win in 2008.
Set one began with both the Toros and the 'Lopes taking the lead back and forth as each team struggled to come out on top. The Toros took their first lead of the set at 14-13 off the hands of TaMesha Jefferson and rode the momentum nearly to the finish. Due in part to GCU's Heather Baron the 'Lopes were able to pull out a 25-20 win in set one.
Not wanting to go quietly into the night, the Toros came out strong in set two and never showed signs of stopping. Stacy Wilder served up the action with two consecutive aces to set the tone for the rest of the match. Contrary to game one, the 'Lopes were only able to hold two leads in the set, as a block assist from Kayla Huckabee and Jefferson proved to permanently put the set in the Toros' hands, culminating in a 25-22 to even the match.
Attempting to carry the energy into set three, the Toros once again took an early lead at 7-3. GCU responded by pushing the Toros to commit attack errors, and relying on Megan Toth & Baron to regain the lead at 10-9. GCU would go on to take the set at 25-17.
It seemed that taking the first lead of the set was the impetus the Toros needed as they played into set four. However, a kill from Heather Rushton was not enough as their 1-0 was quickly overtaken and they continually played from behind until two consecutive kills from Madison Horsley turned the tide of the game to bring the score to 12-11. Constant kills and service aces gave the Toros their second set win at 25-18, also their biggest lead of the game.
Taking another early lead in set five proved not to be enough as the Toros fell behind after their first five points of the frame. The 'Lopes established and kept the pace high as they came out on top after a kill from Jenna Skadeland turned the game in their favor, holding off the Toros 15-11 in the fifth and deciding set to take the match 3-2.
Leading the Toros were Ashley Clark in kills with 14 and Marissa Anderson with 10, with Huckabee contributing 4 blocks and Melissa Velasco 23 digs to aid in the Toro effort.
The Toros (0-3) continue play as they host Biola University on Sep. 2 at 7:00 pm, followed by a trip to La Jolla, CA to compete in the Triton Invitational (UC San Diego) next week.
