USU volleyball played one of its best games in program history, dominating every set, and swept Nevada 3-0. On Tuesday night in the Wayne Estes Center, the Aggies beat the Wolf Pack. The match lasted less than 80 minutes, taking each set, scoring 25-12, 25-18, 25-12. These two Mountain West Conference foes met where it seemed the Aggies could do no wrong. Utah State hit .5 for the match.
They hadn’t hit so well in program history since 1997 when they played VCU, and their hitting average was .55. When it came to hitting, blocking, serving, and passing, Head Coach Rob Neilson commented that it was one of the most completed matches he has ever seen in five years.
USU In the First Set
USU dominated from the opening serve, hitting .700 in the first set and recording three aces. The Aggies used an early 4-0 to open up a quick lead before taking firm control with a 9-3 stretch midway through. Utah State left no room for a comeback, closing the set on a 5-0 run to win 25-12. The Aggies completely avoided attack errors as a team in the opening frame, registering 14 kills on 20 attempts.
In the second set, the Aggies again jumped out in front early as the team gradually built a 9-5 lead in the early stages. As they did in the opening set, Utah State wrestled momentum away from the Wolf Pack with a 6-0 run featuring two aces from sophomore Libero Kendel Thompson. Junior Middle Blocker Tierney Barlow also recorded two blocks during the run, partnering with senior Opposite-Side Hitter Adna Mehmedovic and freshman Outside Hitter Andrea Simovski on back-to-back rallies as USU went up 19-8. The Wolf Pack fought to close the distance with a pair of 3-0 bursts before Utah State finished out the set with a 4-1 run to take a 25-18 win.
The Last Set
Utah State dominated from the service line in the final set, recording five service aces as a team were on their way to clinching the match. The two sides battled to a 4-4 tie before USU claimed 14 of the following 17 rallies to take an 18-7 lead. The dominant stretch saw aces from Simovski and Barlow plus a pair of aces from freshman setter Kaylie Kofe. The Aggies again left no possibility for a Wolf Pack comeback, ending the match on a 6-1 run to win the final set, 25-12. USU also hit .591 in the final frame and recorded 13 digs while holding Nevada to only a .107 hitting percentage.
An Overview Of the Night
Six of the Aggies who scored kills all hit with a percentage of .381 or better. Also, Utah State didn’t have an attack error in the first or third set. All five of their attack errors for the match came in the second. By comparison, the Wolf Pack (11-11, 4-7) had 16 attack errors for the match.
USU’s Mara Stiglic led the Aggies with 11 kills. Just behind her was Andrea Simovski finished with nine kills, hitting .600. Up next was, Kelsey Watson was next with eight kills, while last of them was Tierney Barlow led the team in hitting at .667 with six kills.
Blocking With Aces
When it came to Utah State’s blocking, the Aggies worked with a 10-2 advantage in total team blocks, which fit right in with the theme for the night as this match was part of the Mountain West Tuesday Night Block Party. Stiglic was a brick wall with two solo blocks and three block assists, while Adna Mehmedovic had four block assists.
The Aggies also served up 10 aces. The Wolf Pack had three of their own. Thompson led the Aggies with four aces. Then there was Thomson also was tops in digs with eight, while Simovski and setter Kaylie Kofe had seven digs each. Kofe had 25 assists.
The Aggies, who are now in fourth in the Mountain West, are back in action Thursday night at the Estes Center. They will host Boise State (14-7, 6-4). This will be the second meeting this season between the Broncos and Aggies, as USU won in five in Boise earlier this month. The match begins at 7 p.m. The top six teams in the league standings at the end of the season qualify for the Mountain West Tournament in Las Vegas.
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