Box Score TAMPA, Fla. (SMU) – SMU defeated USF 3-1 Sunday (25-22, 18-25, 25-22, 25-18), led by freshman Jadyn Bauss, who finished with match highs in kills, 13, and digs, 19. With the win, SMU improved to 11-5 overall, 4-2 in The American.

SMU ended the match with a 25-18 win in the fourth. The Mustangs opened the gap early, taking a 12-6 lead to start the set. The Bulls cut the lead to four, 20-16, but SMU never let the lead get any smaller in a set in which it never trailed.

Lily Heim finished with 47 assists, guiding the Mustangs to a .262 attack percentage. SMU outscored USF, 56-48 on the attack, and held the Bulls to a .166 attack percentage. SMU recorded just four blocks, but tallied 69 digs. Montana Watts finished with 18 digs. Rachel Woulfe joined Bauss in double figures with 11 kills. Hannah Jacobs and Meryn Kennedy each scored nine kills.

The Mustangs took a 2-1 lead in the match with a 25-22 victory in the third set. After losing the second, SMU charged out of the break, scoring 12 of the first 15 points. With the Mustangs leading by eight, 13-5, the Bulls started chipping away at their deficit. A 6-1 USF run cut the lead to just three, 14-11. The Bulls came all the way back to tie the score, 19-19, but committed a service error with a chance to take the lead. Kennedy block the next USF attack and then scored a kill, stretching the lead back to three, 22-19. USF cut the lead to one, 23-22, but SMU scored the next two points for the win, 25-22.

SMU had to come-from-behind, and then hold on late for a 25-22 win in the first set. USF scored the first five points, but the Mustangs rallied to take an 8-7 lead. SMU pushed the lead to four, 15-11, forcing a USF timeout. The Mustangs maintained a four-point advantage before the Bulls scored four straight to tie the score, 17-17. The Bulls later scored three straight to take a 21-20 lead with a block-kill-ace combo. SMU forced two attack errors to quickly retake the lead, and then Kennedy scored back-to-back kills, giving the Mustangs a 24-21 advantage. The Bulls score the next point before Jacobs slammed an attack of the USF libero to win the set, 25-22.

The Bulls won the second set for their only win of the match. USF hit .290, its highest set percentage of the match, while outscoring SMU 13-10 in kills. USF also scored with two service aces in the set.

The Mustangs return home Friday to host Temple at 7 p.m. SMU also plays UConn Sunday at 1 p.m.