HONOLULU — LMU defeated UC San Diego 3-1 on Thursday, taking the match 26-24, 18-25, 29-27, 28-26. Three of the Lions' set wins were decided by two points. LMU saved five set points in set 3 before closing it out 29-27.
Set 1
The Lions went in front 2-0 on a
Nicole Schuetz kill and a UC San Diego attack error, but UC San Diego moved ahead 8-7 before
Anya Santrac's kill tied the set. After UC San Diego pulled even at 9-9, the Lions scored five straight behind kills from Schuetz,
Maria Tabacuks and
Delfina Schuh, a
Kayla Lopez ace and another UC San Diego attack error to take a 14-9 lead. UC San Diego stayed close, getting within one before the Lions answered with three straight points on a UC San Diego attack error, a Tabacuks kill and a Schuh kill for a 23-19 advantage. UC San Diego tied it at 23-23, but Schuetz put Loyola Marymount University back in front, and after the set was tied again at 24-24, Tabacuks and Santrac delivered consecutive kills to finish a 26-24 set win.
Set 2
UC San Diego put the Lions in a 3-0 hole to start the second set, but Schuetz and Santrac supplied early kills as the Lions stayed within range. UC San Diego moved ahead 10-5 and, after a
Camille Pomeroy and Tabacuks block made it 13-6, scored five straight behind kills to lead 18-6. LMU put together three straight points down 21-9, including a
Leah Burrell kill and a block by
Aleksandra Stojanovic and Burrell, then later used kills by Pomeroy, Tabacuks and Schuetz around a UC San Diego attack error to cut the set to 23-18. UC San Diego stopped that stretch with a Gia Rivera kill and closed the set 25-18 on a block by Rivera and Elmas.
Set 3
After UC San Diego moved ahead 7-4, the Lions pulled even at 8-8 on Tabacuks' kill and later built a 12-10 edge on a block by Schuetz and Stojanovic. UC San Diego answered with four straight points to go in front 14-12, and after Loyola Marymount University tied the set 17-17, UC San Diego scored four more in a row to lead 21-17. The Lions worked back with kills from Tabacuks,
Zaria Thornton and Schuetz, then tied the set 24-24 on a block by Stojanovic and Tabacuks. UC San Diego took leads at 25-24, 26-25 and 27-26, but the Lions erased each one before Tabacuks served an ace for a 28-27 lead and an Ireland McNees attack error closed a 29-27 set win.
Set 4
UC San Diego moved in front 13-7 with five straight points, including Dillyn Griffin's service ace and an Ireland McNees kill, before Thornton stopped the stretch with a kill. After UC San Diego pushed the lead to 16-10, the Lions answered with six straight points, as Schuetz put down the sideout kill and
Gabriella Cascione served the next five points to help pull the set even at 16-16. The teams traded points through 21-21 before UC San Diego scored twice for a 23-21 edge, but kills by Tabacuks and Santrac tied it again at 23-23, and Schuetz answered UC San Diego's set point with a kill for 24-24. Schuetz gave the Lions leads at 25-24 and 26-25, and after UC San Diego tied it both times, consecutive attack errors by Gia Rivera closed the Lions' 28-26 set win.Â
Schuetz led the Lions with 26 kills and 28.0 points, adding seven digs and four blocks. Schuh finished with 41 assists and 13 digs. Stojanovic recorded eight blocks and added six kills while hitting .357. Tabacuks contributed 11 kills, eight digs, two service aces and three blocks.
The Lions are 4-0 overall. UC San Diego is 2-2 overall.
Up next, the Lions volleyball team remains in Honolulu, Hawaii, to face Hawaii on Friday, Sept. 4, 2026, at 10 p.m.
