Ag spikers take one of three matches
Utah State volleyball went 1-2 in Bozeman, Mont., over the weekend, taking third place in the Holiday Inn Classic hosted by Montana State.
In the first round Friday, USU lost in three games to Texas A&M, 30-17, 30-23, 30-23. The other Aggies rocked USU hard in the first game, hitting a sizzling .708 while holding USU to .120.
In the next two games, Texas A&M was unable to continue its incredible hitting percentage, falling to .278 in the second game and .163 in the third. It hardly mattered as USU was held to .049 hitting percentage in the second game and .077 in the third.
“We’re playing against really good teams,” USU Head Coach Grayson DuBose said. “Texas A&M is fourth in their conference, and it’s a good conference. Washington State plays in the PAC-10, probably the best conference. We didn’t expect our hitting percentages to be stellar. We do need to make fewer errors. That’s the biggest thing that stands out in my mind.”
Junior outside hitter Melissa Osterloh had 12 kills to lead USU, and sophomore outside hitter Jessalyne Payne led on defense with nine digs. Sarah Ammerman led Texas A&M with 12 kills, hitting .550 on the match. Texas A&M finished with an overall hitting percentage of .330 compared to .076 for Utah State. A&M also dominated the categories of digs, 40-34; aces, 7-2; and blocks, 5-3.
In the second match of the tournament, it was USU’s turn to dominate. Osterloh led the way against Montana State with 20 kills, four blocks and 10 digs as Utah State swept the hosts, 30-22, 30-27, 30-28.
Senior hitter Amanda Nielson also played well against the Bobcats with 11 kills, two service aces, three digs and two block assists.
Commenting on Osterloh and Nielson, DuBose said, “They’re hitting the ball hard and in bounds. That’s what you need from those positions.”
USU out-hit Montana State in the match, .141 to .084, and in the third and decisive game, held the Bobcats to .047 hitting percentage. Utah State led in service aces, 5-3, and team blocks, 10-8, while Montana State led in digs with 45 to USU’s 39.
The third match, against Washington State, ended in another sweep with USU on the losing end. The Cougars won 30-26, 30-23, 30-23 to drop the Aggies to a 2-4 season record.
Hitting errors were the culprit in this loss, as USU committed 23 errors in the second and third games while WSU had only 11 errors in the same period.
“We thought we could have come out of (the tournament) 2-1,” DuBose said. “We thought we had a shot against Washington State. At times we were kind of even with them, neck-and-neck, and then we would give up a couple of errors. That’s our inexperience shining through. We need to get better under stress.”
Nielson led USU with 18 kills and seven digs against the Cougars, hitting a strong .271 percentage on the match. Washington State was led by Jackie Albright’s 12 kills and six digs. As a team, WSU had nearly double the amount of team blocks, 12.5 to 6.5.
This weekend the Aggies travel to Berkeley, Calif., to play in another preseason tournament. The Golden Bear invitational will pit USU against 11th-ranked University of California, followed by ninth-ranked Minnesota and Eastern Kentucky.
Speaking about the high level of competition USU faces in these preseason tournaments, DuBose said, “The biggest goal for us is we want to be prepared for the WAC. That’s the reason we schedule these teams, to make sure we get ready for WAC play. We don’t have anything to lose, that’s the nice thing about being us.”
-graham.terry@aggiemail.usu.edu