USU volleyball continued its recent dominance with a 3-1 win against Boise State at the Wayne Estes Center. After Utah State had two straight three-set victories, the Aggies kept the winning going, but it did take an extra set to get the job done. They completed a season sweep of Mountain West Conference foe Boise State Thursday night in the Wayne Estes Center.
After winning in five at Boise, Idaho, the Aggies took care of the Broncos in four in Logan, 25-21, 23-25, 25-18, 25-22. Head coach Rob Neilson led his young team strong and fought back through a lull in the second set. They shifted their momentum when they were down, not giving Boise a chance to breathe.
USU’s Mountain West Record
Utah State’s record so far this season is 11-11, 8-4 in the Mountain West, and doing great in October. They finished last month with an 8-2 record. That also includes the controversial forfeit loss when they chose not to play San Jose State.
The Aggies have been hitting strong and accurately of late, and this last game proved the same. The Aggies just missed a school record for matches in a row of hitting better than .300. USU finished the night hitting .292 against the Broncos (14-8, 6-5), ending a streak of three matches over .300.
Set One and Two
Coming off a pair of sweeps heading into the match, Utah State carried over the momentum with an immediate 3-0 burst to begin the game. The Aggies would never relinquish the lead in the set, routinely thwarting any Bronco comebacks. USU recorded another three 3-0 runs on the way to a 25-22 win in the opening set. The Aggies hit .414 in the opening frame with a line of 15-3-29, led by freshman Outside Hitter Andrea Simovski with seven kills.
The second set would go down as USU’s first set loss since dropping the fourth set in the team’s match at Boise State, snapping an eight-set winning streak. Neither team could generate a run, battling their way to a 10-10 tie before alternating 3-0 runs. The Broncos then took control of the set, winning 10 of the next 13 points to build a 23-16 advantage. Utah State battled back; however, they went on a 7-1 run to close the gap to a single point. In a lengthy rally, Boise State finally found the clinching kill to win, 25-23, and tie the match at one set apiece.
Three Turns To Four
Building off the momentum from the team’s near-comeback in set two, the Aggies bolted out in set three, using a 6-1 run to build an early four-point lead. After leading by as many as five, the Broncos rallied with a 5-0 run to retake the lead. From there, Utah State took over, scoring 10-2 to finish the set, scoring the final seven points to claim a 25-18 victory.
The victory featured contributions from throughout the roster. Simovski recorded three kills, while senior Opposite-Side Hitter Adna Mehmedovic had two kills during the pivotal run. Graduate senior Middle Blocker Kelsey Watson and junior Middle Blocker Tierney Barlow each also killed a ball during the takeover, and freshman defensive specialist Jagoda Bialek had one ace, part of her team-high two aces on the night. Freshman Setter Kaylie Kofe delivered the final point to give USU firm command of the match.
With a chance to close out the match, the Aggies retained their intensity and used a 4-0 burst to take the driver’s seat in the fourth set. USU further pushed its advantage out with a 5-1 stretch, ultimately leading by as many as five points before Boise State rallied. A 6-2 stretch from the Broncos closed the gap to a single point. A trio of kills from Simovski preserved Utah State’s advantage. After another kill from Barlow, the Aggie defense proved unrelenting, digging out numerous Bronco attacks and forcing a pair of attack errors from Boise State to clinch the set, 25-22.
Trio of Doubles and What’s Next
A trio of Aggies recorded double-digit kills. Outside Hitter Simovski led the way with a match-best 20 kills while hitting .286. It is the third time this season Simovski has had 20 or more kills in a match. Middle Blocker Tierney Barlow hit a team-best .667 with 13 kills.
USU Opposite-Side Hitter Adna Mehmedovic had 12 kills and hit .423. The Aggies return to the road to take on Air Force on Thursday, Nov. 7, at 6 p.m., before concluding the week at New Mexico on Saturday, Nov. 9, at 1 p.m.
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