Balanced Effort Powers Mojo to Road Sweep in Columbus
COLUMBUS, Ohio, April 3, 2026.- The San Diego Mojo recorded a
straight-sets sweep of the Columbus Fury on Friday night at
Nationwide Arena, winning 26-24, 25-21, 25-20 to move back into
playoff position.
Grace Loberg paced the Mojo with 15 points, totaling a match-high 13
kills on 30 swings for a .433 hitting percentage while adding two
aces and nine blocks. Her performance pushed her season total to 13
aces, tying the single-season franchise record. Maya Tabron added 11
kills, nine digs and three assists, while surpassing Ronika Stone
and Kendra Dahlke (385) to become the Mojo’s all-time leader in
career kills with 388.
Setter Marlie Monserez directed the offense with a match-high 32
assists and seven digs. Monserez also became just the second player
in league history to surpass 2,500 career assists, reaching 2,526.
Middle blockers Taylor Sandbothe and Marin Grote anchored the net,
with Sandbothe posting a season-high four blocks along with nine
points, and Grote adding five kills on a .556 hitting percentage
with three blocks.
Jovana Brakočević contributed eight kills, two aces and one block,
while Share Venegas led the team with 11 digs.
As a
team, San Diego totaled seven service aces, tied for the second-most
in a match in franchise history and the most in a three-set match.
San
Diego jumped out early in the opening set, building a 10-4 lead
following a Loberg ace. Columbus responded to tie the set at 13-13
and later evened the score at 24-24 before the Mojo closed it out on
consecutive kills from Loberg and Tabron.
The
second set featured multiple lead changes, with neither team able to
create separation. Columbus briefly led late, 19-18, before a Tabron
kill gave San Diego the advantage for good at 22-21. The Mojo
secured the set with back-to-back kills from Sandbothe and a
finishing swing from Tabron.
Columbus took an early 4-1 lead in the third set, but San Diego
responded and moved ahead 9-8 on a Grote ace. The teams traded
points until a Morgan Lewis block sparked a decisive five-point run
that gave the Mojo a 24-19 edge. After a Mojo hitting error, Loberg
sealed the sweep with her 13th kill of the night.
With
the win, San Diego improved to 9-10 on the season and moved into
fourth place in the league standings, while Columbus fell to 4-15.
The victory marked the Mojo’s second sweep of the season and
extended their all-time series lead over the Fury to 10-1.
San
Diego returns home to open a three-match homestand on Sunday, April
5, against the Dallas Pulse featuring a one-of-a-kind Shara Venegas
Bobblehead for the first 1,000 fans in attendance. First serve is
set for 5 p.m. at Viejas Arena. |