San Diego, Calif. - Opening play at the SDSU/USD Challenge, the Tigers made quick work of San Diego State (SDSU) on Friday night as Pacific picked up a 3-0 sweep of the Aztecs at Petterson Gym. The Tigers improved to 3-1 on the year with their second sweep of the season while SDSU fell to 1-3.

Set scores for the match were: 25-23, 25-21, 25-21.

Struggling to find any offensive rhythm early on, the Tigers fought through their troubles to set up a final sprint that proved to be the difference in the opening set. Trailing throughout the frame, the Tigers stayed within striking distance of SDSU thanks to their senior in the middle, Holland Crenshaw, who came up with four kills on just seven attacks. Staying close, Pacific finally made a run against the Aztecs out of a called timeout at 16-12 SDSU. Leading the way during the rally was redshirt-freshman Alex Holt as the young opposite came up with a pair of kills and a block to rally the Tigers' side. Working back to within one, the Tigers nipped at the Aztecs' heels until finally taking their first lead since the opening point at 21-20. From there, the race to 25 went the Tigers' way as Pacific took four of the final six points scored including working a 3-0 run to finish off the comeback win.

Not looking for a repeat of the opening set, the Tigers' offense came out quickly and helped Pacific to an early advantage they would not relinquish. Pacific would build its lead to as mush as seven late in the set before the Aztecs rallied to close the gap to three with Pacific holding set point. However, the cushion would hold for the Tigers as they finished off the set to take a commanding 2-0 lead into the break. For the Tigers, the offense finally found its stride in the second frame as Pacific made just one mistake at the net while picking up 15 kills on 30 attacks (.467). The holes that were not available in the first set opened up in the second as the Tigers spread the ball around, picking up multiple kills from all six Tigers who rotated through the front row.

With a firm grasp on the match, the Tigers were forced to buckle down and work for their three-set sweep as the Aztecs would not go away quietly. Falling behind early like they did in the first, the Tigers turned a four-point deficit quickly on its head as sophomore Maycie LaBass got the Tigers' out of their early funk with two of her three kills in the set to go along with her first service ace. Rejuvenated by their mid-set run, the Tigers built another cushion on the back of of their junior, Lexi Elman, as the third-year attacker came up with three-straight kills to push the lead to 16-11. Despite putting up a fight, the Aztec could only close to within two late as the Tigers finished off the match with another kill from Elman and a block from senior Kimmy Whitson and sophomore Janie Feldsher.  

Overall, the Tigers finished the night hitting .351 despite their slow start led by Crenshaw's .615 attacking. The senior finished with nine kills to match her season best mark while Elman paced the attack with 13 kills on 34 attacks. She added 10 digs to close out her fourth-straight double-double to start the year. LaBass finished her night with eight kills and six digs while sophomore Katrin Gotterba led the defensive efforts with a match-best 12 digs. Getting a spot start in the middle, Feldsher came up with four kills (.571) and added an ace and a pair of blocks. 

The Aztecs were led by Baylee Little who finished with 12 kills on .320 hitting while Ciara Brown added 10 kills on 19 attacks while making just one mistake. As a team, SDSU hit .282 against the Tigers on 103 total attacks.

Pacific continues play at the SDSU/USD Challenge on Saturday, Sept. 5 when the Tigers take on Dartmouth at the Jenny Craig Pavillion on San Diego's campus. The match is scheduled for 10:30 am. Pacific will then travel back to SDSU to take on Oregon State at 3:00 pm.