SAN DIEGO (SMU) – No. 8 SMU Volleyball improved to 4-1 on the season with a four-set win over [rv] San Diego (2-2) Friday night with set scores of 28-26, 22-25, 25-19 and 25-21.
The Mustangs were led by
Suli Davis, who surpassed the double-digit kill mark for the fifth straight match to start the season, collecting 19 kills. She also dug 11 balls defensively for the Mustangs to notch her second double-double of the season.
Favor Anyanwu stuffed the stat sheet Friday night, logging 11 kills and a career-high 11 digs. The stat line marked the first double-double of her career. She also nearly secured a triple-double in the effort, as she was one block away with nine on the outing.
Victoria Harris continued her strong stretch of play to begin the season, logging a season-best 23 digs. Setter
Hannah Beauford dished out 42 assists along with six digs, four blocks and an ace.
The Mustangs notched a season-high 15 blocks against the Toreros and held San Diego to a .149 hitting percentage.
MATCH NOTES
- Before Harris' 23-dig outing on Friday, the last time a player had 20+ digs was when Jordyn Schilling logged 23 digs in the Mustangs' five-set victory at LSU in the 2025 season opener.
- Friday against San Diego marked the 12th career 20+ dig outing for Harris.
- Davis logged her second double-double of the season and the 12th of her career. She has also reached double-digit kills in all five matches this season.
- The Mustangs have logged double-digit blocks in four of their five matches this season.
- The Mustangs improved to 3-1 in the all-time series over San Diego.
- Under Coach Erger, the Mustangs are now 44-13 in true road matches.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Down 10-5 early in the first set, SMU went on a 10-3 run to go up 15-13. The Mustangs blocked game alive midway through the opening set as a solo rejection by
Gabi Placide gave SMU its fifth of the set, putting the Mustangs up 19-17. San Diego kept in contention and pushed SMU to extra points, holding on for three set points, including one of their own. However, the Mustangs prevailed in set one, squeezing out a 28-26 victory. Davis led SMU in the opening frame with four kills. After having five blocks in its loss to TCU on Wednesday, SMU had five in the first set.
San Diego managed to hold on to a small lead in the second set with a 15-13 advantage entering the media timeout. A 3-0 run by the Mustangs, including kills from
Gabi Placide and
Natalia Newsome, put the Mustangs in front by one (16-15). The Toreros responded with five of the next seven to reach the red zone first. Back-to-back kills from
Favor Anyanwu got the Mustangs within two at 24-22, fighting off two set points, but San Diego shut the door on the second set to even the match at one set each.
The Toreros went up 7-2 to start the third frame, forcing the Mustangs into an early timeout. Responding with a 6-0 run starting at the 15-12 mark, SMU jumped in front to a three-point edge (18-15). The Mustangs kept the momentum going and went on to claim the third set 25-19 to take back the lead. SMU hit .321 in the set and continued to block well with five again in the third. Their defensive effort forced San Diego to hit .034, its lowest percentage set of the match. Offensively, Davis was responsible for seven of the Mustangs' 13 kills in set three.
Tied 15-15 after a back-and-forth start to the fourth set, three straight points starting with a kill from Placide put the Mustangs up three, 18-15. San Diego scored three of the next four, but it was another kill from Placide that got SMU to the red zone first at 20-18. The teams traded points until a 3-0 run, which included a block by Beauford and Anyanwu, closed the set and the match for SMU. The Mustangs had their most efficient offensive set of the match when it counted most, hitting .333 in the frame. Davis and Placide each had four terminations in the final frame.
SMU LEADERS:
SMU Kills Leader:
Suli Davis (19)
SMU Assists Leader:
Hannah Beauford (42)
SMU Digs Leader:
Victoria Harris (23)
SMU Blocks Leader:
Favor Anyanwu (9)
SMU Ace Leaders: Three with (1)
SMU Points Leader:
Suli Davis (21.5)
NEXT UP:
SMU will host Texas in its home opener on Wednesday, Sept. 9. First serve is set for 8 p.m. CT on the ACC Network.
