Coming out of their cage, the Trojans were doing just fine.

Despite some sloppy serving, No. 4 USC men’s volleyball had a comfortable lead against No. 16 CSU Northridge in the first set. But by the second, it was clear the Trojans had to fear redshirt junior outside hitter Jordan Lucas, who would get away with a career-high 30 kills by the end of the night to keep Wednesday’s matchup close.

Up 14-13 in the fifth set, the Trojans were nearly out of second chances when the ball ricocheted off a haphazard bump straight into Lucas’ chest before dropping to the ground. Screams rang out from the bleachers as the Trojans secured victory and Lucas sank to the ground in defeat. 

USC (6-0, 1-0 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) did just enough to overcome CSUN (7-2) to win its third ranked matchup of the season. The Trojans contended with strong blocking from the Matadors throughout the match, which held star senior outside hitter Dillon Klein to a 0.250 hitting percentage, his worst since the 2025 MPSF championship game against then-No. 8 Pepperdine.

“As competitors, they elevated their game, and we needed to respond,” Head Coach Jeff Nygaard said of CSUN in a postgame news conference. “I just told the team, ‘I think we played three good games out of five, and that equals to a win, but the baseline isn’t going to carry us for the rest of the season.’”

It wasn’t pretty, but with another win under their belt, the Trojans kept their perfect record alive and improved to 54-35 all-time against CSUN.

Trojans bring a balanced approach

Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Wesley Smith rose to the occasion for the Trojans, logging six blocks, while junior setter Caleb Blanchette’s 45 assists proved crucial in finding open looks. After struggling with back issues, 2025 AVCA All-American and sophomore middle blocker Parker Tomkinson returned for his second game of the season, and first since Jan. 16, with a strong showing of one block and five digs in three sets. 

Earlier Wednesday, both teams had a player named to the AVCA’s inaugural player of the year watch list: Klein for USC and redshirt junior opposite hitter Jalen Phillips for CSUN. Klein also earned his sixth career MPSF/Molten Offensive Player of the Week nod on Monday.

But both top-tier offensive players faltered at Galen Center: Phillips managed a decent 0.302 hitting percentage on 43 attempts while Klein put up a season-high five attack errors for the second consecutive game. 

Although Klein struggled more than Phillips, USC provided a more balanced approach than the Matadors, spreading its scoring among several players, with four Trojans logging double-digit kills as part of their 58-kill day. On the other hand, Lucas and Phillips combined for 50 of the Matadors’ 67 kills. An all-time performance by Lucas and a formidable CSUN defense, which put up 14 blocks, kept the Matadors in the game despite their lack of depth.

‘Elite problem solvers’

In the first set, Klein and the Trojan squad could count on gaining a few points from fumbled blocks by the Matadors, but the match completely changed in the second: Service errors and blocks gone awry were replaced by longer, methodical rallies. CSUN’s blocking became much more consistent, anchored by redshirt freshman outside hitter Grayson Albers and sophomore middle blocker Joao Favarim, who logged six and seven, respectively. 

“We like to call ourselves elite problem solvers, because we have a lot of tools in the shed, so to speak,” Nygaard said. “We had to check down into a better rotation so that we had better matchups.”

While the bulk of the offensive burden fell on Lucas, he reveled in the opportunity. When the dust settled, Lucas had not only nabbed 10 more kills than the second-highest Matador, Phillips, but more than the top two Trojans combined on a strong 0.509 hitting percentage.

CSUN consistently improved its hitting percentage after its first-set jitters, while the opposite was true for the Trojans. Maximizing each possession became key for USC to have any hope of surviving. Tomkinson, back from a two-game hiatus, exploded for five digs in the second set as the Matadors heated up. 

“There’s something about having a 7-footer next to you,” redshirt junior outside hitter Noah Roberts said of Tomkinson in a postgame news conference. “That just gives you the confidence to go do your job, because you know that they’re going to do theirs.”

His effort was supported by Klein, who posted a season-high 9 digs.

USC was deft enough to turn things around by the fifth set, but if the past is any indication, Nygaard has his work cut out for him before his next match against No. 15 UC Santa Barbara (5-3). The Trojans have gone to five frames in their last two matches against ranked opponents, and MPSF play, sporting top foes like No. 6 BYU (6-2) and No. 1 UCLA (8-0, 2-0), is still looming in the distance.

The Trojans and Gauchos will face off at 5 p.m. on Saturday at Galen Center.