Feb. 25, 1997

USC Men's Volleyball Defeats La Verne 3-0

LOS ANGELES - The No. 12 USC men's volleyball team beat La Verne, 15-2, 15-10, 15-12 on Tuesday night in the North Gym in front of 112 in a non-conference match that lasted 1 hour and 5 minutes.

USC improved to 8-5, while La Verne droped to 1-11

Senior swing hitter Chris Guigliano had a match-high 12 kills and eight digs for the Trojans, while the Leopards were led by senior opposite hitter Rob Sneider's 11 kills. USC outhit La Verne, .369 to .151.

In game one, La Verne tied it at 2-2 following junior middle blocker Troy Langley's service ace. The Trojan ran off 13 straight points for a quick victory. Paced by junior middle blocker Trent Brown's one solo black and four block assists in game one, USC outblocked La Verne 7-2, and outhit the Leopards, .353. to -.174.

USC's 8-0 run in the middle of game two gave the Trojan a 13-4 lead, but La Verne regrouped with a 6-0 run of its own to cut the lead to 13-10. The Trojans scored the next two points, however, and finished off the game on junior opposite hitter Brad Callahan's kill.

Game three saw the Leopards take a 7-4 lead, but the Trojans came back with a 5-0 run. La Verne would tie the match at 9-9 and 12-12, before back-to-back kills by USC sophomore middle blocker Omar Rawi game the Trojans a 14-12 lead. A La Verne hitting error ended the game and the match.