Aggie volleyball loses third-straight conference match against Fresno State
“Estes Magic” wasn’t enough for the Utah State volleyball team on Thursday as it dropped its conference home opener 3-1 to visiting Fresno State.
The loss drops the Aggies to 4-12 on the season and 0-3 in conference.
“We couldn’t play well enough for a long enough period of time,” said head coach Grayson DuBose.
USU had fewer errors than Fresno State and a higher attacking percentage, but only recorded 37 kills in the four games.
“We need to find a way to get more kills,” DuBose said. “We need better production.”
The young Aggies allowed the Fresno setters to score on a number of dumps over the Aggie defense as senior Jelena Jovanovic and junior Brooke Legaux registered seven and four kills, respectively.
“We kept talking about it and then we couldn’t execute,” said sophomore middle blocker Carly Lenzen. “It’s like we were thinking about it almost too much.”
It was a tactic that Fresno has used this season, but not frequently, DuBose said.
“We didn’t prepare well enough to go cover that stuff,” DuBose said. “We’ve got to do a better job defending that and seeing the right stuff.”
The Aggies struggled with their serves as well, recording 10 service errors and allowing the Bulldogs to score eight aces.
“Those things just bite you in the butt,” DuBose said. “You can’t just give points away like that.”
It was a sluggish start for Utah State. The team recorded only 7 kills while dropping the first set 25-19.
The Aggies never trailed in the second set, winning 25-15. After taking an early lead, USU allowed Fresno to come as close as 12-11, but the Aggies pulled away with an 8-1 run. The Bulldogs helped Utah State by hitting -.154 with 15 errors in the set.
The third set was a back-and-forth affair as the Aggies and Bulldogs registered 16 ties and 7 lead changes in the game. Fresno hit .370 in the set with only three errors, but USU responded with its best offensive set of the night, scoring 13 kills. The Aggies tied the set at 19, but committed four errors over the final six points as Fresno State closed out the set 25-19.
“I think the errors we string together are really a mental thing,” said sophomore opposite side hitter Kayla DeCoursey. “We kind of got in our heads a little bit and let that get to us.”
DeCoursey missed the first 13 games of the season, but returned to the court Thursday to lead the Aggies with 10 kills in her first home match.
“Being injured really puts things in perspective and really made me want to go out there and have fun and enjoy the experience,” DeCoursey said.
Lenzen had four kills, two service aces and six block assists on the night. Sophomore setter Erica Moscoso recorded 18 assists and seven digs in first home game back from injury.
The next game for the Aggies will be Saturday at 11:00 as they host the UNLV Rebels.
– Thomas.sorenson@aggiemail.usu.edu
Twitter: @tomcat340