Club volleyball wins home openers
The Utah State University men’s club volleyball team opened its home season Friday and Saturday, going undefeated at home with the A team winning two matches and the B team winning one.
In its home opener Friday afternoon, the A team met Salt Lake Community College in the Spectrum. SLCC took the place of Weber State University who was originally scheduled to play but had to cancel.
The Aggies started quickly in the first game taking a 5-1 lead, but Salt Lake was able to come back, hanging on until finally going ahead at 21-20. SLCC came away with the 23-25 victory.
In the second game, it was the Aggies who fell behind early. After coming back and tying the game at 16-16, the Aggies outscored SLCC 10-3 to capture the 25-19 victory in game two.
The third game was another back and forth battle with the Aggies taking an early lead but SLCC scoring five straight to go up 9-6. The Aggies slowly fought their way back, scoring points when they could and were finally able to regain the lead at 19-18. The game was tied late at 21-21 but Utah State scored four of the next five points to win 25-22.
Unlike the previous games, the fourth game was dominated by scoring runs. Utah State came out quickly, scoring the first seven points, but SLCC scored four straight to close the gap, 7-4. USU made a couple small runs, extending their lead 20-12, but SLCC went on a run, outscoring USU 2-10 to tie the score at 22-22. The Aggies finally put the game away and won 25-23, giving them the 3-1 match victory.
Utah State started the match slow, but after losing the first game was able to win three straight games for the victory.
Outside hitter and A team captain Adam Longmore said the team picked up its intensity after the first game.
“We were lazy the first game. Our passing and defense were not that good,” Longmore said. “We started out shoddy but came around, I’m really pleased.”
Middle blocker Brad Davidson said, “We had jitters the first game, we had to shake off our nerves.”
Coach Loren Finn said the Aggies have a new team and are working with different line-ups.
“It takes a while to get used to,” Finn said.
Throughout the match, the Aggies were changing line-ups and experimenting with different player combinations.
“We were making sure everyone gets in,” Longmore said.
Davidson said, “We were trying different lineups, getting used to working as a team.”
On Saturday night, the A-team played again in the Spectrum, this time against BYU-Idaho. The match looked much like a repeat of Friday’s match.
In the first game, the Aggies started slow, falling behind by 14 and losing the game 11-25.
Following the first game, the Aggies rebounded. USU gained a five point lead, 11-6, in the second game but BYU-Idaho came back, tying the game several times and taking the lead at 18-17. The Aggies fought back regaining the lead and taking game two, 25-22.
Game three saw the Aggies come out on top again. The Aggies stayed close and took the lead early. Then, leading by only one at 19-18, put the game away and earned the 25-19 victory.
In game four, facing a 2-1 deficit, BYU-Idaho fought back, opening the game with six straight points. The Aggies got back into the game and tied it at 11-11 and again at 16-16, but BYU-Idaho held on for the 22-25 win.
The deciding fifth game was a seesaw battle much of the way, but runs by the Aggies at key junctures in the game helped them pull out the 25-18 victory, giving them the match 3-2.
“It was a fun match,” Longmore said.
Outside hitter Mike Garrison said once again jitters were a factor in the first game, and following the first game the Aggies were able to pick up their intensity.
“We need to keep our intensity up,” Garrison said. “We need to keep everyone talking.”
Finn said he thought it was a harder match and the Aggies were able to pick up their intensity.
“I thought we communicated better tonight,” Finn said. “We have more experience, even a night makes a difference.”
In addition to the two victories by the A team, the USU B team also picked up a victory in their home season opener. The B team defeated Weber State on Friday night in the HPER, 3-0.
Last year the Aggies only played at home once, but this year the Aggies are excited to have several home matches scheduled.
“It is always an advantage to play at home,” Finn said. “There’s something special about playing at home.”
Davidson said, “It is a lot of fun, we would like to fill it [the Spectrum]. We appreciate the support we have.”
The Aggies had nearly 100 fans at each of their matches in the Spectrum.
They are scheduled to play at home again on Nov. 9 and 10 when Utah State will be hosting a
tournament.