Success is no stranger to the University of San Diego’s women’s volleyball team and Toreros coach Jennifer Petrie.
USD has played in the NCAA Tournament 22 times in Petrie’s 26 seasons. She owns a 527-190 career record and has been the West Coast Conference Coach of the Year seven times, the Regional Coach of the Year three times and the National Coach of the Year in 2022. That year, USD made the Final Four for the first time in program history.
Petrie has coached 11 All-Americans, 12 honorable mention All-Americans and nine WCC championship teams.
Petrie knows talent and success. But there’s excitement in her voice when she discusses the 2025 Toreros.
“The sky is the limit for this team,” Petrie said Monday evening while discussing a team that is 13-4 overall and has opened WCC play with six straight wins. The Toreros hold a one-game lead over Oregon State and Washington State atop the WCC standings.
“We want to be the best team in the country and we’re creating that opportunity. We’re getting there. I see sparks and I see continual improvement. We’re still pretty young, but these players get it. They see what it can be. They’re very committed. We’re going to be good for a long while now. They want to carry the legacy forward.”
The Toreros’ roster is deep in quality talent, starting with outside hitter Nemo Beach and setter Kylie Munday, both of whom were named WCC Players of the Week last week for, respectively, the third and second times of the young season.
A junior from Chandler, Ariz., the 5-foot-11 Beach is averaging 4.41 points and 3.99 kills per set. She spikes from a vertical height of 10 feet with a force duplicated by few in the women’s game.
“Beach is crushing it,” said Petrie. “She is having a breakout year. She was always a good player, but she is becoming an elite player. But we have a lot of weapons. If you put all eyes on Nemo, there’s Isabel Clark, Kali Engeman, freshman Ava Durgan, BayLea Sparks and Kennedy Osunsanmi. And that’s just up front. Libero and defensive specialist Olivia Bennett is excellent at ball control. And Munday is incredible at setter … smart, a leader and a great athlete. We’re in a pretty good place. We’re using pieces to our advantage. The defense is getting tighter. I feel pretty proud of the progress we’re making.”
Munday said the Toreros are “better this week than we were last week. And we were better last week than two weeks ago.”
“We always played well as a team. But now our individual skills are picking up and blending into the bigger picture,” she said. “A lot of people don’t realize it, but volleyball might be the most demanding team sport out there. What I do depends on the defense getting me the ball. And our front line is dependent on the setter making the right decision and executing the play. One great player can’t make you successful. It’s so much teamwork and strategy. The biggest challenge for us is sustaining that high level of play.”
The Toreros had a six-week head start on other NCAA women’s volleyball teams when they were selected to represent the United States in the World University Games. They traveled to Berlin in July for what Beach called “a great jump-start” to the season.
But USD stumbled out of the gate, losing all three matches they played at the Trojan Invitational at USC.
“That was a black mark on our resume,” said Petrie.
The Toreros then fell at home to UC San Diego, which is just 4-14 this season.
Since then, they’ve won six consecutive matches. A straight-sets win over Portland and a four-set win over Oregon State last week boosted USD 15 spots to No. 40 in the NCAA rankings — the biggest gain last week by a team ranked among the top 50.
“Everything is piecing together perfectly,” said Beach, a returning all-WCC first teamer who was the conference’s Freshman of the Year in 2023. “This year, I’m looking to win the WCC, go deep in the NCAAs, be named the WCC Player of the Year and become an All-American.”
USD”s Nemo Beach, left, celebrates with teammate Olivia Bennett during a match earlier this season. (Thomas Christensen, USD athletics)
The 6-foot-1 Engeman is a graduate student transfer from Georgia Tech. “She has been a bright spot for us,” said Petrie. “She wanted to make an impact. She brings a lot of energy.
“Clark (who averages 5.4 points a set) handles pressure really well and has a really heavy arm when she hits the ball. Durgan has been a super addition to the right side.”
Then there’s Bennett.
“She is the firecracker,” Petrie said. “She has a very respected voice as a leader.”
The Toreros travel this week to Washington, visiting Washington State on Thursday and Seattle University on Saturday for WCC matches. Both matches will be streamed on ESPN+.
Every week during the school year, U-T contributor Bill Center highlights one San Diego college team that’s making strides on and off the field. To nominate a team, email wcenter27@gmail.com.