LOS ANGELES – LSU fell to No. 19 USC in straight sets, 19-25, 21-25, 16-25 on Friday night at the Galen Center.
LSU (6-4) was held to a .109 hitting percentage on 28 kills, had four aces, 43 digs and 5.0 blocks, while USC (8-1) had a .310 hitting percentage behind 50 kills and turned in 10.0 blocks in the win.
Outside hitter Jurnee Robinson led LSU with 11 kills and added two blocks and six digs. Right side Tireh Smith and outside hitter Nia Washington followed with six kills. Washington landed three aces, a block and seven digs in the match.
Setter Lauren Brooker handed out 13 assists and had an ace, while libero Ella Hemmings finished with a career-high nine digs to lead the LSU defense.
Set 1
USC jumped out to a 5-2 lead, but LSU went on top 8-7 thanks to four unanswered points. After each team exchanged points, resulting in multiple ties, the Trojans took a 15-12 lead into the media timeout. The Tigers used both of their timeouts trailing 22-17 and ultimately fell to the Trojans in the opening set, 25-19.
Set 2
The Trojans led 8-3 early, but the Fighting Tigers scored eight of the following 10 points, capped by a kill from Washington, to take an 11-10 lead. However, USC went into the media timeout with a 15-13 advantage. The Women of Troy gained more momentum and led 17-14 before a 4-0 run highlighted by three consecutive aces by Washington put LSU ahead 18-17 and encouraged a USC timeout. The home team responded, however, with a 6-1 run to regain a 23-19 lead and took a 2-0 lead with a 25-21 set win.
Set 3
USC opened the set by scoring the first four points of the set and was up 8-2 when LSU signaled for a timeout. The Tigers came out of the break with a 4-0 run ignited by kills from middle blocker Angelina Lee and Washington, but the Trojans pieced together a 7-2 run to stretch their lead to 15-7, forcing LSU to call its final timeout. USC led by as many as nine points, and although LSU pulled within five points at 21-16, the Trojans pulled away with a 25-16 win.
Up Next
LSU wraps up its West Coast trip with a 5 p.m. CT match against Cal on Saturday, Sept. 20.
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