USU volleyball drops pair of matches in straight sets on the road
Kicking off their week on the road, Utah State women’s volleyball lost in three sets against the University of Wyoming on Thursday in Laramie, WY. Now the Aggies are sitting 3-15 on the year, and 1-6 in the Mountain West.
Sophomore outside hitter Gabbi Shumway led the team with nine kills, while senior setter Kassidy Johnson tallied 23 of USU’s 25 assists. Senior libero Taisa Taylor led in the back row with 11 digs, and junior Ally Packard joined in on the double-digits on the back row with a total of 10 digs.
In the first set the two teams were at a 6-6 tie, until Wyoming broke away on a seven-point run and took the lead 13-6. The Cowgirls went on to take the first set 25-15. The next set followed similar suit with Wyoming taking a two-set advantage with the final score of 25-12, after the Cowgirls opened up with a five-point run and carried the momentum to the top.
Utah State was able to have a bit of a bounce back in the third and final set and carried the lead 15-14. Wyoming answered the call by going on a three-point run to take the lead 17-15. The Aggies came back within one, 17-16, but ended the set in defeat, 25-19.
Saturday night the Aggies wrapped up the week on the road with another three-set loss at Colorado State. After that night, Utah State now sits 3-16 overall and 1-7 in conference play. Once again, Shumway led the team with eight kills and freshman middle Corinne Larsen proved to be the most efficient hitter for the team, hitting .333 (5-2-9). Johnson recorded 20 of the team total 22 assists, and for the 13th time Taylor reached double-digit digs and lead the team again with 11.
The Rams took the first set 25-12 after taking the lead early on with a four-point run. Colorado continued to fire on the Aggies and closed out the match with the scores of the next two sets both ending in 25-12. Even though the two teams played through five ties in the second set, the Rams broke off and went on a five point run, and opened the third set with an early attack of 6-1 before ultimately taking the victory.
Next week Utah State will host Boise State at home in Logan on Oct. 16, followed by another home game on Oct. 18 against Air Force. Both matches will take place at 7 p.m. at the Estes Center.