After an upset victory against No. 7 Arizona State over the weekend in the State Farm Showcase, No. 15 USC women’s volleyball rolled into Austin, Texas, with the belief that it could take on one of the best teams in the country.

While that belief held true through the first 15 points, No. 9 Texas (3-2) went on an 8-2 run after that to seal the first set; from there, the Longhorns never looked back, culminating in a sweep of USC (1-2). Outside of a few good rallies and standout performances from a couple of Trojan players, there were very few positive moments in the tough 25-16, 25-21, 25-20 loss.

With USC only playing one of the matches in the inaugural Big Ten/SEC Volleyball Challenge Week, it will have to wait again until next year’s Challenge Week — or potentially the NCAA Tournament in December — to take on another SEC team.

First set struggles for first time

A close start to the match was a good sign for a Trojan squad in need of a reset after a four-set loss to No. 10 Creighton (2-1) on Saturday. The recipe was there for the team, sparked by two kills in the first 15 points from sophomore outside hitter Abigail Mullen, who ended the night with nine kills and two blocks.

However, Mullen’s last kill sparked something on the Texas sidelines; the Longhorns lit up the Trojans until the end of the set, outscoring USC 17-9 and winning the critical first set.

This marks the first time in the young season that USC has lost the opening set, one which tends to set the momentum for the rest of the match.

The effort was mounted by Longhorn sophomore outside hitter Cari Spears, daughter of former NFL defensive end Marcus Spears and former WNBA player Aiysha Spears. The 6-foot-3 prodigy totaled six kills in the first set on her way to a game-high 17 kills in the match, posing as a consistent threat to the Trojan defense. 

Spears had a massive .464 hitting percentage and added eight digs in a terrific performance from the sophomore.

Back-and-forth middle set 

The Trojans bounced back in the second set, knotting the score at 14 apiece before trading points back and forth with the Longhorns. Texas finally took back the lead to tie the set at 19, going on a 7-2 scoring run to win the set.

Longhorn senior outside hitter Torrey Stafford, a three-time AVCA All-American and two-time AVCA National Player of the Year semifinalist, notched two kills in the spree, continuing to cement herself as one of the best players in all of college volleyball.

Trojan star redshirt junior outside hitter London Wijay tried to stop the duo of Spears and Stafford, but was ultimately unsuccessful. Wijay once again thrived despite the loss, recording 11 kills, seven digs and two blocks on the day.

Wijay’s smaller stature at just 5-foot-10 has not posed an issue in her time with USC; this season is no different, as she leads the team in kills and ranks third in blocked shots. She continues to be a star on a struggling Trojan squad that has won just one of its last seven sets.

She recorded three kills in the second set, which was not enough, putting USC in a tough two-zero hole.

Early Trojan run falters late in final set

USC once again started strong and, in its best stretch of the night, recorded an 8-2 lead to start the third set. After struggling to find a consistent rhythm throughout the match, the Trojans finally found it in this set, but once again gave it up too soon.

Texas slowly mounted its comeback, culminating in an 8-0 run to secure victory. The final kill by Spears delivered the sweep for the Longhorns, swiftly ending a rough night for USC that it would like to forget. 

Even with Spears’s kill, it was Longhorn senior setter Ella Swindle who turned the tide for Texas. Swindle entered earlier in the series during the second set, but it was partway through the third set when she shut the game down. As part of the 8-0 run, Swindle recorded three blocks, swaying all the momentum back to the Longhorns and allowing them to take the contest. 

The Trojans will look to turn things around in their next match against the University of San Diego (2-1) this weekend. Even with two wins, the Toreros were swept by a top-25 team in No. 20 Baylor (4-0), which will give the Trojans confidence.

USC will take on San Diego on Sunday at 2 p.m. at Jenny Craig Pavilion in San Diego.