Volleyball defeats Vandals
The Utah State Aggies picked up their first Western Athletic Conference road win of the season on Wednesday night in four sets over the Idaho Vandals (25-18, 25-22, 20-25, 25-17). Senior setter Chelsea Fowles recorded eight kills, five blocks, and hit .538, but her most impressive stat was 47 assists in the match that gave her 3,948 career assists, good for the school’s all-time record. Carrie Steverson previously held the record with 3,942 career assists; a record that remained untouched for 19 years.
“We’re really proud of her,” Aggie head coach Grayson DuBose said. “She’s been a big part of our program. I think it’s a real tribute to her work ethic and to the teammates that have surrounded her over the years. She’s had some wonderful teammates around her that have allowed her to get so many assists.”
The Aggies (14-3, 2-2 WAC) broke a four-game road losing streak to the Vandals (8-9, 3-3 WAC) and DuBose notched his first career win at War Memorial Gymnasium.
“That’s a tough place to play,” DuBose said. “They have a really nice home court advantage. So, to be able to go in and win on ESPNU is just a really great accomplishment for our team and testament to who they are as volleyball players.”
Junior outside hitter Liz McArthur posted 20 kills, nine digs and three service aces, while sophomore opposite side hitter Shay Sorenson 13 kills and hit .478. Sophomore outside hitter Josselyn White added 11 kills, six digs, five blocks and two service aces while hitting .300, and senior middle blocker Shantell Durrant paced the Aggies with eight block assists.
Trailing 7-4 in the first set, USU got back to even three times including at 12-12 before taking control with runs of 5-1 and 8-3 to post the seven-point win. White, who spurred the 5-1 run with a kill, led USU with five kills in the opening set as the Aggies hit .375. The Vandals pulled within two points before committing four straight errors that started the Aggies’ 8-3 run.
USU never trailed in the second set as it opened an early 13-5 lead and withstood a late rally by Idaho to notch the 25-22 win. McArthur and Sorensen each had five kills for the Aggies in the second set as they hit .486 and the Vandals hit .419.
The Aggies jumped out to a quick 4-1 lead in the third set, but the Vandals recovered with a 7-1 run. With the set tied at 9-9, the Vandals scored six straight points and eventually built a 21-11 advantage en route to the five-point win.
USU scored the first two points of the fourth set and never looked back, building an early 9-5 lead and coasting easily to the eight point win. McArthur and Sorensen each had six kills for USU in the fourth set as the Aggies hit .484 and the Vandals hit .250.
“For us it comes down to serve and serve-receive,” DuBose said. “If we can serve well and stay in-system then I think we can do some great things. That was real evident to me last night. We were in-system 70 percent of the time and that’s quite an accomplishment.”
Coming into to the match, the Vandals were 15th in the nation in blocks per match, but it was the Aggies who out-blocked the Vandals, 15-8. USU finished the match with a .347 hitting percentage and the Vandals hit .256. The Aggies also had six more service aces in the match, while the Vandals had three more digs and three fewer service errors.
The Aggies will play game two of their three-game road trip against the Boise State Broncos (14-4, 2-2 WAC) on Saturday and they may have another test on their hands.
“That’s a challenge for us,” DuBose said. “If we can go in and serve tough and make it so they (Boise State) can’t set to their middle blockers in-system, then we’ll have a distinct advantage.”
Game time against the Broncos is set for 3 p.m.
– ty.d.hus@aggiemail.usu.edu