Trojans Roll Into Round of 16

Freshman April Ross had 13 kills and 13 digs Saturday night to help USC to a 15-4, 17-15, 15-6 victory over Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in the second round of the NCAA women’s volleyball tournament.

In front of 646 in the Lyon Center, the Trojans, seeded No. 1 in the Pacific Region, improved to 27-2 and advanced to the tournament’s round of 16.

They’ll play Florida (29-4) on Thursday at 7 p.m. in the regional semifinals at the Sports Arena. Colorado State will face Penn State in an earlier match, with the winners playing Friday for the regional championship.

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo ended the season at 17-12.

Kansas State d. Pepperdine, 19-17, 15-13, 10-15, 15-3--Freshman Cari Jensen had a season-high 24 kills to lead the Wildcats over the Waves in a second-round match in front of 375 at Malibu.

Kansas State, which also got 18 kills from Kelle Branting, moves on to the Mideast Region semifinals. The Wildcats (22-8) will play top-seeded Wisconsin (30-3) on Friday night at Madison, Wis.

Pepperdine was denied a second consecutive trip to the round of 16. The Waves ended the season with a 24-7 record.

“I think Kansas State played very steady,” Pepperdine Coach Nina Matthies said. “ . . . Our points were awfully hard to come by.”

UCLA d. Morgan State, 15-4, 15-6, 15-5--Kristee Porter had a match-high 21 kills to lead the Bruins (23-7) over the Lady Bears (26-16) in a Mideast Region first-round match before 667 at Pauley Pavilion.

In another first-round match, Michigan State defeated Wisconsin Milwaukee, 15-6, 15-4, 7-15, 19-17.

UCLA will play Michigan State (18-12) tonight at 6 for a spot in the regional semifinals.

Wisconsin Milwaukee ended its season at 23-5.

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Correspondent Steven Herbert contributed to this report.