USU volleyball takes battle of the Aggies
In the battle of the Aggies on Thursday, the Utah State volleyball team swept New Mexico State to move into sole possession atop the Western Athletic Conference standings.
New Mexico State dominated early, racing to a 6-1 advantage behind precision passing and strong hitting, but Utah State stormed back and forced eight NMSU errors for a 25-21 first set victory.
The teams duked it out in the second set as neither squad led by more than three. Poor serving hurt both sides as the teams combined for nine service errors in the second set alone. The USU defense stole the show and the Aggies pulled out the 27-25 victory for a commanding two games to none lead.
The third set was nearly all USU as the defense continued to shine with 9.5 blocks over the final two sets and the Aggies ran away with the third set 25-16 for the sweep.
Kaitlyn Van Hoff and Shay Sorensen finished with eight kills apiece for the Aggies, who finished with 12 blocks while holding the red-clad Aggies to a .230 hitting percentage.
Utah State improved to 11-5 overall and 6-1 in WAC play, while New Mexico State fell to 5-1 in the WAC after suffering its first conference loss of the season.
The Aggies will host Denver in their next game on Saturday, Oct. 6 at 7 p.m.
– curtis.lundstrom@aggiemail.usu.edu
Twitter: @curtislundstrom