The Trojans opened up their Pac-12 conference play with a thrilling back-and-forth victory last week over UCLA, followed by a win over Oregon State in three sets. With a seven-match winning streak, USC is among a handful of Pac-12 teams that have gone 2-0 in conference play thus far. 

“I think that having the Pac-12, … one of the best conferences in the nation, it’s really good to help us prepare for the good teams that we’re going to play in the tournament as well, so yeah, it’s great competition,” said senior outside hitter Skylar Fields in an interview with the Daily Trojan.

Fields is coming off two consecutive 18-kill matches against UCLA and Oregon State. Against the Beavers last Wednesday, she led the team in this category and also added three blocks.

“I mean, it’s definitely nice to have a win streak, but I think what we’ve done is try not to think too far ahead or think in the past,” Fields said. “[We] just trust our training and go out and hope to get a dub in every match.”

For the second week in a row, freshman outside hitter London Wijay took home Pac-12 Freshman Volleyball Player of the Week honors thanks to an outstanding performance against UCLA. With 24 kills, two aces and 10 digs, Wijay has been critical in the Trojans’ recent success.

Junior setter Mia Tuaniga created many scoring chances for USC against Oregon State, leading the team with 42 assists in the victory. Tuaniga, with 406 assists and counting on the season, has been largely responsible for generating points for the Trojans.

“We all are definitely showing a lot of effort and attitude as far as wanting to get after it,” Tuaniga said. “Whether it’s a loss or a dub, we’re like, alright, dialed in, next thing.”

The Trojans’ next test will be Utah Friday night. The Utes have been average this season, with a 1-1 conference record and a 6-6 record overall. Utah hasn’t won back-to-back matches yet this season, but is coming off a victory against UC Berkeley.

For the Utes, offensively, one player to look out for is junior outside hitter Lauren Jardine. Jardine leads the team in points with 153 thus far, including a team-leading 17 kills in the Utes’ recent win against the Golden Bears. Defensively, senior middle blocker Allie Olsen has been a powerful force, with 35 blocks on the season.

Last season, USC and Utah split the season series, at one match apiece. In this upcoming match, the Trojans will seek their eighth consecutive victory, while Utah will aim to get its season back on track.

“Both teams are really good. They’ve got a couple of pin hitters that hit the ball really hard and in our game, to score points, you’ve got to hit the ball really hard, which is what Skyler does, right?” said Head Coach Brad Keller. “Colorado’s got two of them. Utah’s got one. And so they always will have the ability to hit their way out of jams.”

Following Utah, the Trojans will take on Colorado Sunday afternoon, a team with a similar record as USC, at 9-4 overall and 1-1 in conference matches. Winning three of their last four matches, the Buffaloes have been led by graduate outside hitter Lexi Hadrych, who has 174.5 points on the season. Hadrych led Colorado with 10 kills and three blocks in their most recent victory against Stanford. Defensively, Skyy Howard leads the Buffaloes with 59 blocks.

“Both programs are just super well coached,” Keller said. “I have a ton of respect for both coaches and coaching staff. They’ve done a great job and they’re always prepared for every single match that they play in.”

USC and Colorado were competitive in head-to-head matches last season, each winning one respectively.

Catch women’s volleyball at Galen Center taking on Utah Friday at 7:00 p.m. and Colorado Sunday at 1:00 p.m.