SAN DIEGO — Led by eight blocks from Kjersti Strong, Saint Mary's (6-8, 0-2) played well at the net against the San Diego Toreros (5-6, 1-0), but it wasn't enough to slow down the USD offense, as they swept the Gaels (18-25, 17-25, 22-25). After a difficult road test to open up conference play, the Gaels will look to regroup in their return home to Moraga. 

FEARSOME FRONT
For the seventh time this season, the Gaels out-blocked their opponent, winning the battle at the net 11-8 today. Kjersti Strong was the biggest contributor to the blocking front for Saint Mary's, tallying a career-high eight block assists. Clarissa Klein was not far behind with four block assists, while the trio of Kristen Erland, Hannah Taylor and Abby Castillon each contributed three. It was the ninth time this season that Gaels have reached double-digit blocks in a single match, after doing it just five times a season ago. 

NO ERRORS FOR TAYLOR 
After committing eight attack errors on Thursday, Hannah Taylor made the right adjustments today, landing every attack in the court. Taylor finished with the second most kills on the team, going for six on 18 swings and no errors. It was Taylor's first errorless contest in her Gael career. 

A GAME OF RUNS 
Saint Mary's had a couple of momentum building moments in this one, but each time it seemed that the Gaels had seized the big MO, San Diego responded with a long run of their own. In set one, Kjersti Strong sparked a 4-0 run to knot things up at 16, but the Toreros responded with a 9-2 run of their own, taking the first set 25-18. It was a 6-1 run in set two that pushed the Gaels ahead 12-10, but again, there was an immediate response from USD, finishing out the set on a 15-5 run to take the commanding 2-0 lead. After falling behind 17-12 in set three, the Gaels responded with a 9-5 run to make things interesting, at 22-21 in favor of USD. The Toreros, however, would once again recapture momentum, this time letting it carry them to the finish line to complete the sweep. 

AMONG OTHER NUMBERS
Kjersti Strong and Genevieve Bane split the kills lead for the Gaels today, each with seven. Strong added a team-high eight blocks, while Bane came up with a solid seven digs. Both Ella Sandt and Hailee Garcia played well at the set position, with 12 and 11 assists respectively, six and seven digs respectively and a service ace each. Makenna Joyce led the team with 12 digs, while also adding an ace. 

UP NEXT
The Gaels return home to take on Pepperdine on Thursday night. First serve is set for 7 PM. 

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