USU Volleyball notches fourth conference victory
LOGAN — Utah State Volleyball defeated Fresno State 3-1 (25-12, 25-23, 23-25, 25-22), securing their second straight win to improve to 12-5 on the season.
The Aggies started the match out hot, securing 13 kills in the first set to Fresno State’s five. Senior outside hitter Tatum Stall had more kills than the Bulldogs did in the first set with six on 18 attacks.
In the second set, the Aggies slowed down a little bit. Fresno State had 17 kills in the set to Utah State’s 13, but the Aggies hitting percentage was still better at .235 than Fresno State’s .220.
Utah State trailed 16-11 early in the set but ended up coming back to win 25-23.
The Aggies tried to send Fresno State home in three sets but the Bulldogs had other plans. Fresno State started the set up 7-3 getting an early advantage.
Utah State, however, didn’t back down from the challenge.
The Aggies then went on an 8-1 run to get back into it and briefly held an 11-9 lead. Fresno State would then go on a run of its own with a 6-1 turnaround.
After back-and-forth play throughout the set, Fresno State won set three 25-23.
“We came out really hot. We saw a lot of good things in a lot of different places,” head coach Rob Neilson said. “But then we got lulled into it and didn’t play as clean as we wanted to. It’s really nice to get a win.”
Like set three, set four consisted of more back-and-forth battling between the two programs. With 11 ties and four lead changes, Utah State needed a push.
Tied at 20-20, setter Leah Wilton-Laboy duped the unaware Bulldog defense with a dump set — sending the ball over on the second hit while disguising it as a set — which hit the floor without any contest, putting the Aggies up 21-20.
“Those are my favorite things to do — besides setting up my teammates — when things get tight, it’s just a way for me to help everyone out and take a breath,” Wilton-Laboy said. “It comes up in the back of my head, but you never know when it’s going to happen.”
It gave the Aggies enough leverage to win the set 25-22, securing their second consecutive victory and improving their conference record to 4-2.
Stall was fantastic again for the Aggies with 14 kills on a 35.9% attack percentage. Outside hitter Kaylie Ray had a coming-out party with eight kills on 15 attacks.
As a team, the Aggies had nine aces but were hindered by eight service errors, which proved costly in the third set. The Aggies combined for a 23.5% attack percentage, a 37.2% setting percentage and a 91.9% service percentage.
Utah State will continue its homestand next Tuesday as they host 12-4 (4-1) Boise State.
Featured image by Sam Warner from the UVU game.