California State University at Northridge
5-1,0-0Big West
USC
5-0,0-0MPSF
No. 6 USC Hands No. 15 CSUN its First Loss of the Season
1/22/2025 9:29:00 PM | Men's Volleyball
With the 23-25, 25-23, 25-22, 25-13 win, the Trojans improve to 5-0 on the season while handing the Matadors (5-1) their first loss of the 2025 campaign.
CSUN had two players scoring in double figures as redshirt sophomore Jalen Phillips put down a match-high 19 kills (.188) and Lorenzo Bertozzi added 17 kills on .235 hitting. Bertozzi also tied for team-high honors with nine digs while Phillips served two of the Matadors' three aces.
Senior setter Donovan Constable posted 42 assists along with five kills, three digs, and three blocks while libero Chris Karenzis matched Bertozzi with nine digs. CSUN wound up hitting a season-low .209 (54-27-129) as a team while USC hit .389 (57-13-113). The Trojans, who lead the NCAA in blocking, had 17.0 team blocks in the win.
SET 1: CSUN 25, USC 23
The Matadors overcame an early two-point deficit as Joao Avila's kill gave a CSUN a two-point edge at 12-10. The visitors then rallied to take a series of two-point leads at 17-15, 18-16, and 20-18. A Bertozzi kill would fuel a 3-0 CSUN run that forced a USC timeout with the Matadors up 21-20. CSUN then claimed three of the next four points to take its largest lead at 24-21 on another Bertozzi kill. USC fought off a pair of set points before Phillips connected on the right pin, sending the Matadors to the 25-23 win.
CSUN TAKES SET ONE!
— CSUN Men's Volleyball (@CSUNMensVB) January 23, 2025
It's an early lead with the 25-23 result over No. 6 USC.#GoMatadors pic.twitter.com/LDNcVDqUBu
SET 2: USC 25, CSUN 23
After hitting .364 in set one, CSUN would not hit higher than .200 in the remaining three sets as the Trojans piled up 16 blocks the rest of the match. After USC took an early 6-4 lead, CSUN tied the score on a Avila/Stilian Delibosov block. The score remained tied at 8-8 when the Trojans put together a 7-3 run to take a 15-11 lead into the media timeout. A USC kill opened up a 21-18 lead when the Matadors rallied for three straight points to knot the score on a Trojan hitting error. USC answered by outscoring CSUN 4-2 down the stretch to seal the 25-23 win.
SET 3: USC 25, CSUN 22
The Trojans led by as many as four (9-5) in the early going before CSUN pulled even at 11-11 on a Phillips kill. The score was still tied at 14-14 when took a one-point lead on a USC hitting error. The Matadors still led by one at 19-18 when a co-block by Bertozzi and Jackson Payne gave CSUN a two-point edge. The visitors rallied back to tie the score before another Phillips kill gave CSUN a 21-20 lead. USC would then score four straight points to lead 24-21 before a Trojan attack error saved one set point.
SET 4: USC 25, CSUN 13
The final set was all Trojans who hit .667 to CSUN's .100. USC claimed six of the first seven points of the set and would never trail. A Bertozzi kill capped a 3-1 Matador run that trimmed the deficit to 7-4 but CSUN would get no closer the remainder of the set.
HEAD COACH THEO EDWARDS SAID
"I thought tonight was a great lesson for us. This is the first time we've had our backs against the wall in a major way, especially having a guy get injured mid-match and having to make some adjustments. It really comes down to keeping our composure and figuring out how to weather the storm and battle back. At some point this season, we were going to get here and face that test and hopefully, we'll take it into Friday."
UP NEXT
CSUN closes out a four-match homestand on Friday, hosting No. 3 UCLA at 6 p.m. The match will stream live on ESPN+.
#GoMatadors
