SAN JOSE, Calif. – The LSU New Orleans Privateers kept the pressure on the UC Riverside Highlanders throughout the night but could not break through as they fell 3-0 (25-21, 25-19, 25-22) on Friday night in their opening match of the San Jose State Invitational at Spartan Gym.
The Privateers played from slightly behind for most of the first set and trailed by as many as five points when they faced a 9-4 deficit. However, a 4-0 spurt helped LSU New Orleans pull within level terms at 18-18, which was keyed by three UCR errors and an
Olivia Bartrina kill.
Casi Doll recorded three kills down the stretch though as the Highlanders broke a 20-20 tie with a 5-1 run to end the opening set in their favor at 25-21.
LSU New Orleans got out to a 3-1 lead to start the second set, but the Highlanders responded with four straight points of their own. From that point, the Privateers tied the set once at 9-9 thanks to kills in back-to-back rallies by
Nyakuak Lual and
Laura Piva.
The Highlanders kept the Privateers at arm's length on the scoreboard and pulled away late in the set in large part due to a 17-11 advantage in the kill department. The Highlanders also hit .324 to the Privateers' .156 attack percentage.
As was the case for the majority of the night, the Privateers found themselves battling back from an early deficit when they fell behind 13-8 in the third set. LSU New Orleans rallied to cut the Highlanders lead to 14-13 over the next six rallies.
The Privateers tied the score at 19-19 behind a pair of kills from
Armie Hall and briefly grabbed the lead on an ensuing UC Riverside attack error. The Highlanders responded with five straight points down the stretch and held off the Privateers once again to close out the night.
Doll finished with 12 kills to lead the Highlanders. Andrea Brewer finished with eight kills while Sariah Johnson and Nicole Hughes had seven kills each. Misu Nguyen led the way in digs with 16.
INSIDE THE BOX
Piva hit .458 and finished with a team-best 13 kills for the Privateers. Hall added 11 kills and was in on three blocks. Lual finished with nine kills and hit .615 on the night.
Mariana Franco had 16 assists and
Defne Eciroglu had 13 assists.
Derin Nur Aydin was also in on three blocks.
NEXT UP
The Privateers will take on Pacific on Saturday at 8 p.m. CST.
SEASON TICKETS
Tickets for all home matches are available
here.
ABOUT LSU NEW ORLEANS
In July of 2026 the University of New Orleans rejoined the LSU system and rebranded to "LSU New Orleans" bringing together two powerful brands - the purple and gold of LSU with the unbreakable spirit of New Orleans. The transition marks a return to the LSU family for the University - a place it called home from 1958-2011. Athletic teams will remain the Privateers and continue to compete in the Southland Conference.
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