MORAGA, Calif. – Saint Mary's faced San Francisco on Tuesday night in what was an impressive showing by the Gaels. Saint Mary's got the ball rolling early by taking the first two sets, and regardless of dropping the third set, SMC was able to close it out by taking the fourth set and winning the match 3-1.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• SET ONE | Saint Mary's got off to a quick start against San Francisco, posting double the Dons score at three different times during the first set. Outside hitter Lindsey Knudsen collected six kills while setter Alosina Thompson recorded four digs during the first set to help the Gaels to a 25-19 victory.

• SET TWO | The second set was closer than the first as the Dons were right on SMC's heels for most of the match. San Francisco took the lead for a short time during the middle of the set, however the Gaels grinded back to tie it up. The score went back and forth for most of the remainder of the set until Saint Mary's scored the key points necessary in the end to win the set 25-23.

• SET THREE | Set three was another close one for the Gaels and the Dons as the two teams traded points throughout the whole period. The Dons held the lead for a portion of the time, but Saint Mary's kept it under control and gained back the momentum. The Gaels tied the set at 22-22, but after a number of long rallies, San Francisco eventually won the set 27-25.

•  SET FOUR | Saint Mary's did not back down in the fourth set, keeping the Dons on their toes in the beginning and soon after pulled ahead. The Gaels maintained the lead for the remainder of the match and recorded points on multiple crucial rallies that gave them the push needed to take the set 25-18 and win the match 3-1.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Lindsey Knudsen recorded a double-double on Tuesday night with 21 kills and 17 digs.
• Knudsen's 21 kills  and 17 digs are both tied for season highs, recorded against Southern Utah and Fresno State respectively.
• Saint Mary's posted a hitting percentage of .287 while San Francisco posted a hitting percentage of .137.
• With the win on Tuesday night, the Gaels improved to 2-1 in conference play.

QUOTABLE

"San Francisco has improved dramatically," said head coach Rob Browning. "Their digging was outstanding tonight which made us really extend ourselves in some long rallies. We would have liked to have executed better and more consistently throughout the match. We're trying to elevate our game and improve each day, and we could have made a bigger stride toward that goal. We continue to show that we are a strong offensive team. Knudsen and O'Sullivan put up some big numbers tonight. We like that we have different attackers who can step up at different times to help carry our team. One of the best things we did tonight is make relatively few attack errors."

"Tonight was a good match for our team," said Knudsen. "USF's defensive tenacity forced us to step up our own which made it a fun match to play and probably also a fun match to watch! I love this team and I feel so lucky to get to go out and battle with them every week!"

UP NEXT

Saint Mary's begins a three-game road trip on Friday and will visit three conference teams in their upcoming schedule. First up, the Gaels travel to Stockton for a match against Pacific on Friday at 7 p.m. before moving on to face Loyola Marymount and Pepperdine next week.

#GaelsRise – For ticket information to all home volleyball matches, call the SMC Ticket Office today at 925-631-4689 or click the ticket link here to purchase your seats now.