PVF San Diego Mojo

San Diego Falls to Orlando in Five Sets

March 11, 2024 - Pro Volleyball Federation (PVF)
San Diego Mojo News Release


SAN DIEGO - The San Diego Mojo took a loss to the Orlando Valkyries in five sets, 25-19, 20-25, 23-25, 25-20, 12-15, on Monday night at Viejas Arena. San Diego fell to 2-6 on the season, while the Valkyries improved to a 5-6 record. Temi Thomas-Ailara recorded a team-high 22 points and Ronika Stone followed with 19 points. Noostara Tomkom had a 50 percent kill percentage, while Stone posted a kill percentage of 35 percent.

Set 1: San Diego started the match strong with a block by Stone giving the Mojo their first point. The longest rally of the set was won by Mojo bringing them to 2-1. Stone brought the Mojo to a 14-11 advantage with an incredible spike to end an ever-flowing rally. A kill by Lindsey Vander Weide took the Mojo to 18-13 and a Stone put Adam Diego at set point with a kill bringing the score to 24-18. The Mojo won the set two points later, 25-19.

Set 2: After winning the first set, the Mojo went into the next set with great energy. The squads traded points to 8-8 until Valkyries went on a three-point run to reach 11-8. The Mojo fell behind making the score 17-10 when Grace Loberg started a rally that brought the Mojo to within four points at 21-17 after a Valkyries attack error. That's as close as San Diego would get in the set, ultimately losing, 25-20.

Set 3: The Mojo and Valkyries opened the frame once again trading points until a mini-run gave Orlando a 10-7 lead. Loberg started a 6-5 run for San Diego that culminated with a kill by Stone to throw Valkyrie off their game and give the visiting side a 15-13 lead. The Mojo continued to battle, and a Hannah Tapp kill put the score to 18-17 and Vander Weide followed with a kill to make it 18-18. Coming out of a timeout, the Valkyries' Adora Anae stunned the Mojo with a kill that gave them a 22-21 lead. It was short-lived as Thomas-Ailara gave the Mojo the tying point after a lengthy rally. Orlando challenged a floor touch, but the Mojo tied the score to 22-22. The Mojo continued to play a strategic defense that resulted in two point errors by Orlando. The crowd erupted after Mojo challenged a center line fault, winning to bring the score to set-point, 24-22. The Valkyrie scored the next point, but the Mojo won the set, 25-23.

Set 4: The Mojo fell in set four, with the Valkyries taking an early 6-2 lead. A kill by Vander Weide cut the deficit to 7-4. Strategic defense and a big kill by Thomas-Ailara cut the deficit to 11-10, but the Valkyrie's' controlled the rest of the set, ending it with an ace from Anae to make it 25-20.

Set 5: The Mojo started set five strong and led 5-3 after a monster kill by stone. Valeria Papa ended a strong Orlando run with a powerful shot to tie the score at 6-6. Coming out of a timeout, the Valkyries built a 14-10 lead to get to match point. San Diego scored the next two points, but Orlando ended up winning the set and match at 15-12. Next up, San Diego heads to Nevada on Sunday, March 24 to face the Vegas Thrill at Dollar Loan Center with the first serve set for 4 p.m. PT.



Pro Volleyball Federation Stories from March 11, 2024


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