The losing skid has come to an end for WSU volleyball (9-4). The Cougs infiltrated Los Angeles and took down the USC Trojans in a tight five-set match.

It was not an easy win, but the Cougs looked strong in every set. It was tightly contested throughout. WSU would take the first set and each team would trade set wins until WSU would eventually take the entire match.

The final scoreline would be a Coug win 3-2 (25-19, 25-27, 25-22, 19-25, 15-6). The only set that could be considered lopsided would be the decisive fifth set as the ladies from Pullman would start off on a run and never look back.

The offense for WSU would be revived in this match, as the team would combine for a hit percentage of .301, their best mark in the four most recent matches.

Pia Timmer was electric throughout the match, tallying 24 kills on 57 attacks and controlling the court when she was on it. Laura Jansen would add 20 kills of her own and the duo looks in form. Those two and Katy Ryan lead a three-headed monster for WSU that is genuinely finding its groove.

Argentina Ung would rack up a remarkable 52 assists, eight kills and 13 digs. Truly stepping into her own as a jack-of-all-trades.

Even with injuries, the team is developing set roles that can be slightly altered to cater to the play style of the opposition, and that was on full display against the Trojans.

Although not a sweep like they have had previously, this was the best that the Cougs have looked so far this season, showing grit and determination in all facets of play which is truly evident in their dominant fifth set.

In the final set, they would come out the gates swinging with an 8-2 run capped by back-to-back kills by Timmer and Jansen. This lead was insurmountable for the Trojans, as they would eventually fall 15-6. Overall in the set, the Cougs would hit .550 and truly looked like they had even more gas in the tank.

As a whole, the offense came back as strong as it was early season and the defense was evenly spread across the team. Four Cougs would rack up double-digit digs, with Timmer having eight as well.

Magda Jehlarova would have four service aces and Julia Norville would have two of her own in an all-around fantastic game for everyone on the team.

Glad to be back in the win column, assistant coach Burdette Greeny praised the team and their ability to adapt around injuries and make the game plan work.

“This team really fought today … I can’t say enough about how unified and together these 11 student-athletes that we had playing today are. This was a big team effort from this group today,” Greeny said postgame.

The Cougs will be glad to get the losing skid over with, but the schedule does not get any easier from here.

Coming up, the Cougs will play two good opponents. On Friday, they travel to Berkeley, California to take on University of California at 7 p.m. After that, they head to Stanford to take on the No. 5 ranked Cardinal at noon on Sunday.

Both will be tough matchups, but the Cougs have shown that they are a team that has fire and is willing to take on anyone.