Haley wins 900th match, USC improves to 20-0
Deja vu? · Head coach Mick Haley is hoping that this year’s Women of Troy can replicate his 2003 NCAA champion team that finished 35-0. Maya Dondonyan | Daily Trojan
Two top-15 teams came to the Galen Center over the weekend hoping for an upset, but it was the No. 1-ranked USC women’s volleyball team that came away unscathed. The Women of Troy earned two conference wins against No. 10 Arizona State and No. 14 Arizona to push their record to a spotless 20-0 on the season and 8-0 in Pac-12 play. USC is one of just two undefeated teams in the country and is off to their second-best start in program history under head coach Mick Haley.
Friday night saw the Arizona State Sun Devils come to Troy for a highly anticipated match up between two of the nation’s best teams. The Sun Devils were undefeated and ranked No. 5 nationally just a week ago, but a trip to the Washington schools resulted in two big losses — to Washington and Washington State — as well as the loss of their star outside hitter, Macey Gardner. With Gardner not in the lineup for the Sun Devils, USC was able to capitalize and pull out the hard-fought 3-1 (25-15, 25-21, 23-25, 25-23) victory.
“We’re glad we got out with a win,” Haley said. “It was a good match for us to stay in and fight, and it was a heck of a way to win.”
Sophomore opposite hitter Brittany Abercrombie had 11 kills and just one error for a .357 hitting percentage, junior libero Taylor Whittingham had 26 digs and senior outside hitter Samantha Bricio had a match-high 24 kills to go along with 11 digs and four aces.
Despite rough patches of play toward the end of the match, Bricio thought her team gained some valuable experience by battling through the adversity.
“I think we’re learning, especially in games like this,” Bricio said. “It’s good that it’s happening now so we know how to get out of these situations in the future, so this was a learning experience for us.”
Whittingham was also happy with the way her team fought throughout the match.
“Every match we learn something different about ourselves, which is a really good thing,” she said. “We’ve learned to battle and stay calm when situations get tight, and when we control what we know we can control, we’re really good.”
The win over ASU was also a milestone victory for USC’s own Mick Haley. The longtime head coach secured his 900th career Division I victory on Friday night, making him just the third active D-I coach to reach the mark.
Sunday’s matinee matchup against the No. 14-ranked Arizona Wildcats was a defensive battle that saw multiple ties and lead changes in front of a loud Galen Center Crowd. Arizona would put up a fight against the Women of Troy, but USC executed when they needed to and pulled out the exciting 3-1 (29-27, 25-22, 26-28, 25-14) win.
Freshman Alyse Ford came up big against the Wildcats with perhaps her best performance in a USC uniform, logging a career-high 19 kills on a scorching .571 hitting percentage. Bricio added 21 kills and three aces, Whittingham had a season-high 27 digs, and Ford’s freshman counterpart Baylee Johnson dished out a career-high 43 assists. Johnson would end the match on a setter dump to secure USC’s 20th straight victory.
USC will now travel up to the Pacific Northwest to take on Oregon State and No. 24 Oregon. USC will take on the Beavers first on Friday night at 8 p.m. before matching up against the Ducks on Sunday at 1 p.m.