Aggies extend six-game winning streak against SDSU
Coming off a five-set victory against UNLV, the Aggies returned to the Wayne Estes Center to play their first home match in two weeks against San Diego State. After losing the first set 26-24, Utah State won the next three to improve to 8-1 in conference play and 14-5 on the season.
San Diego State came to Logan riding the high of beating second-place Boise State in four sets and continued their momentum early. The Aztecs jumped out to an early 13-8 lead, but the Aggies were able to come back to tie the game 17-17. Both teams traded blows that resulted in six lead changes before San Diego State closed the set by winning three straight points.
The first set was defined by unforced errors. The Aggies made eight, including one on the final point to seal San Diego State’s early victory.
“We just made a lot of uncharacteristic swings and gave him way too many points in that first set,” head coach Rob Neilson said. “I think that comes from being a little bit tired and they’re physical. They presented a big block and their back row was digging a ton too. When teams make it tough on you to kill a ball, you sometimes try and do a little extra.”
“We’ve been working hard on coming out on the first set with some urgency and sometimes we come out with a little bit too much,” senior outside hitter Tatum Stall said. “But I feel like we really dialed in on the second set, and we made some really good swings.”
The Aggies were able to clean up their attack in the second set, only creating two errors and winning the set 25-19.
The Aztecs did not allow the Aggies to come away with a victory easily and forced Utah State to score more than 25 points to win both the third and fourth sets.
The third set was another back-and-forth affair, resulting in 13 ties and six lead changes. The Aggies were able to gain a little separation near the end of the set, building a 23-21 lead before a San Diego State timeout. Coming out of the timeout, the Aztecs were able to tie the match at 24 before Utah State scored twice to win the set 26-24.
USU looked like they were going to run away with the fourth set after a 7-1 scoring run gave the Aggies a 14-8 lead. The Aztecs responded with an 8-2 run of their own to tie the game 16-16. Utah State eventually took a 24-23 lead and was able to win the set 29-27 and the match 3-1.
Stall led the way on the attack for the Aggies, registering 17 kills, while also adding 11 digs and 2 blocks.
“I didn’t have my best game on Thursday,” Stall said. “I just wanted to come out, you know, with a simple mind and just play the game that I love. And I always play my best games when I’m playing free and not counting stats.”
“She just played so fast and that’s when she’s at her best,” Neilson said while discussing Stall’s performance on Saturday afternoon. “She had a couple of errors early and then was just phenomenal for the rest of the match. That’s what we expect from Tatum, she’s a really special player.”
The win on Saturday reaffirms Utah State’s two-game lead over New Mexico and Boise State for first place in the Mountain West Conference. The Aggies will hit the road again with matches against Colorado State and Wyoming before returning home to play Air Force on Nov. 2.