SDSU comes back from 2-1 set deficit to defeat Cowgirls in Laramie
San Diego State came from behind after being down two sets to one and defeated Wyoming in five games (25-20, 22-25, 13-25, 25-23, 16-14) Thursday evening in Laramie. It was the Aztecs’ first win on the Cowgirls’ home floor since the 2002 campaign and ended a short two-game skid as SDSU won for the fifth time in its last seven outings.
It was the Aztecs’ sixth five-set match of the season, a situation in which they have been victorious four times in 2009. However, it was the first time that they came back after dropping two of the first three sets.
Freshman middle blocker Andrea Hannasch led the Aztecs with 12 kills as she hit .400 on the night. She contributed a personal season-high nine blocks, the best single-match total by an Aztec this year, and also accounted for a career-high 17.5 points in the match.
Joining Hannasch in double figures in kills with 11 was Hannah Evans, who notched her sixth double-double of the year by adding a career-high 15 assists. It marked the sixth game in a row in which the junior outside hitter finished a match in double figures in kills. She was one dig shy of recording her first career triple-double as she also had nine digs over the five sets.
Wyoming, meanwhile, had three players end the night in double figures in kills led by Jodi Purdy with 21 and Lauren Whitney with 19. Teammate JennaRae Jester added 15 kills and the three accounted for all but 10 of their team’s kills,
In the opening set, San Diego State took the early lead at 3-2 and held the upper hand through the remainder of the contest with their biggest advantage being five points. Hannasch led all players with six kills and also added three of her blocks as the Aztecs hit .321 to .194 for Wyoming.
SDSU again grabbed the lead quickly in the second set and held it for the first half of the contest only to see the Cowgirls tie the game at 16-16. At 18-all, the home side score two quick points on an Aztec service error and an ace by Dani Bedore. Three of Wyoming’s final four points came on a pair of SDSU attack miscues and a service error.
After the break, the Cowgirls came out and controlled the third set from start to finish, running out an 8-1 lead. The eventually built their advantage to 20-5 as SDSU had only eight kills and a .059 hitting percentage in the contest.
The fourth set saw the Aztecs lead most of the way and enjoy a 24-20 lead late in the contest. At that point, Wyoming fought back on a pair of kills by Purdy and an Aztec hitting error to get within one at 24-23. But Evans was able to record the game-winning kill and even the match at two sets apiece.
In the deciding contest, San Diego State was on the edge of dropping the match as it trailed 13-10 late in the set. But SDSU used kills by Paije Pearson and Kyley Sexton plus a pair of Cowgirl errors to take a 14-13 lead. After Wyoming tied it at 14-14, the Aztecs closed out the match on a kill by Pearson and a Wyoming hitting miscue.
San Diego State continues road action as it now moves on to Fort Collins, Colo., where it will meet league-leading Colorado State on Saturday, Nov. 7, at 1:00 p.m. (MT).
UNLV VOLLEYBALL WOMEN SWEEP PAST UNR TEAM
Rebels win fourth straight over Wolf Pack with Thursday’s 3-0 win.
RENO, Nev. – The UNLV Rebels (7-14) swept past the Nevada, Reno Wolf Pack (8-17) Thursday night with their 3-0 (27-25, 25-22, 25-20) victory in Reno, Nev. UNLV was paced by three double-digit kill outings from Cursty Jackson, Sara Nehf and Kelsey Keeler. The win is the fourth straight for UNLV in the series and improves their overall head-to-head record to 11-to-7.
UNLV out-hit UNR by a .336 to .269 efficiency with the visitors owning a .283 or higher effort in each set. The Rebels topped out at .421 in the first set with 22 kills on only six errors in 38 attempts. The Wolf Pack, on the other hand, hit .406 in the first, but fell to .225 or below the remaining two frames. Neither team amassed more than six errors in any set, as UNR reached it once to UNLV’s two times.
“The team played with a lot of intensity,” noted UNLV head coach Allison Keeley. “We competed hard in critical situations. This team has improved every week through the season and it’s great to capitalize on our efforts with a win tonight.”
Jackson led UNLV in kills with her 18, while notching a .343 hitting efficiency. She added five assists, one dig and one assisted block.
Nehf followed closely behind with 16 kills on .407 hitting. She dished out seven digs, one assist, one ace and one solo block.
Keeler added 11 kills with four digs, one assist, one ace and one assisted block.
Samantha Richard led UNLV in assists with 43, while she added six digs, three kills and one assisted block.
Jeralynn Makaiwi topped the Rebels in digs with 11, while Kela Lau Hee followed with nine of her own.
UNR got double-digit kill efforts from Kylie Harrington and Lindsay Baldwin, as they contributed 11 and 10 kills, respectively. Harrington added eight digs and one ace to Baldwin’s four assisted blocks and three digs.
Sonnie Sei led the Wolf Pack in assists with 34 and also had nine digs and two assisted blocks.
Nicole Link led the match with 14 digs.
The Rebels return to action next Thursday, Nov. 12 at 7:00 pm against New Mexico in the Cox Pavilion.
-UNLV-
LMU Lions Women's Volleyball Team Defeats Gonzaga in Five-Set Battle
LMU won the last two sets of the match in the victory.
LMU (11-13, 2-8) won the last two sets of a match against Gonzaga (9-14, 4-5) on Thursday night en route to earning a 24-26, 25-9, 17-25, 25-23, 15-10 victory over the Bulldogs in Gersten Pavilion.
The Lions, who hit .294 as a team, were led by freshman Alaina Bergsma with a career-high 32 kills. The native of Chandler, Ariz. hit .268 over the course of the five sets, teaming the kills with two service aces, 17 digs and a block solo for a double-double. Joining Bergsma with double-doubles on Thursday were sophomores Ariana Covington (11 kills and 16 digs) and Alesha Young (51 assists and 10 digs). Covington also posted three service aces in the victory, with all three coming down the stretch in the deciding fifth set. Juniors Becky Stehling and Megan Nash played extremely well for LMU, as Stehling hit .435 with 13 kills, three service aces, three block solos and one block assist. Nash, a local product from Manhattan Beach, Calif., posted a .421 hitting percentage with 10 kills and two block solos.
Michelle Boevers led the Gonzaga attack with 16 kills on 37 swings for a .351 hitting percentage. Layne Brosky finished second on the team with 10 kills. Kelsey Bashaw and Denise Van de Mortel split time at the setter position, with Bashaw passing-out 25 assists to Van de Mortel’s 19 to the tune of a .241 team hitting percentage. Gonzaga was aggressive on the block, sending upwards of three blockers on various Lion attacks. The tactic seemed fairly successful as the Bulldogs collected 10 total team blocks, including a block solo and five block assists from Kaprina Goodwin.
The first set proved to be a battle as the teams traded blows throughout. Bergsma led all players with six kills, but the Lions fell in the set by a count of 26-24. The Lions posted 23 of their 78 team digs in the first set alone, led by six apiece from Covington and libero Felicia Arriola. Boevers boasted five kills for Gonzaga, while Caitlin Cozad and Emily Johnson each contributed service aces. The Bulldogs also teamed for three blocks in the set en route to the victory. After playing even to 23, a Kenna Crouse attack error handed Gonzaga a set-point opportunity. The Lions once again evened the tally, one of 15 tie scores in a period that also saw nine lead changes, before kills from Johnson and Bashaw put the set away for good.
The second set was all LMU, as the Lions roared to a 25-9 victory in the period. The nine points were the fewest the Lions have allowed in a set to 25 since holding Cal State Bakersfield to just nine last year on September 26. Gonzaga hit .000 as a team, as Bashaw was the only Bulldog with two kills. The Lions made it even tougher on the Bulldog attack, collecting five team blocks, highlighted by two block solos from Nash. Bergsma, who finished every set with at least six kills, posted another six on nine swings in the second. Stehling pitched-in her three service aces as the Lions ran away with the set from the beginning. The Lions hit .429 as a team, including three kills on as many attacks from Stehling. The two teams played to a tie at two before LMU exploded to open-up a 10-3 lead on a Bergsma swing. That lead advanced to 20-9 before LMU scored the final five points, including two kills from Bergsma and one each from Crouse, Covington and Nash, to keep Gonzaga in single-digits on the period.
Gonzaga was back to business in the third set, earning a 25-17 victory in the frame. Three kills from Brosky and Goodwin helped the Bulldogs to a .423 team hitting percentage. Eight kills on 16 attacks from Bergsma were not enough as the rest of the Lions managed just five combined. After failing to record a block in the second, Gonzaga returned to the task at hand, collecting three more in the third. The Bulldogs never trailed in the set, and after playing even with the Lions to 10 points, Gonzaga opened-up a 17-10 lead, highlighted by a pair of Brosky kills and two Lion attack errors. The visitors advanced the lead to 21-13 en route to taking a set-point lead at 24-16. After LMU spoiled one set-point on a Bergsma swing, Boevers found the floor for the 25th and final point.
Facing possible defeat headed into the fourth set, LMU won a hard-fought battle in the period, 25-23. Much like the first, the two teams played to 15 tie scores and seven lead changes before LMU was able to knot the match score at two sets apiece. A balanced attack of six kills from Bergsma, five from Stehling and four from Covington proved just enough to overcome five kills from Brosky and three more Bulldog blocks. Tied at 21, LMU scored two unanswered points on a Bergsma service ace and a ball-handling error charged to the Bulldogs. After Brosky found the floor to cut the deficit to one point at 23-22, LMU elected to take its first timeout. The break served its purpose as the Lions claimed the first point out of the huddle to take a 24-22 set-point lead. Goodwin spoiled the first Lion attempt at the set victory with a kill before Covington responded for one of her own to send the match into a fifth period.
Despite what could be considered a close score at 15-10, LMU seemed in control of the race to 15 points in set five. Bergsma collected six more kills on 11 attacks to lead the way, aided by three Covington service aces. Tied at four points apiece, LMU began to run away a bit, earning a 7-4 lead on Covington’s first service ace, forcing a Gonzaga timeout. The break did little to slow momentum as LMU continued to run to an 11-4 lead, capping a streak of seven unanswered points for the Lions. LMU moved the tally to match-point at 14-9 before fittingly earning the victory on a Bergsma kill.
The Lions return to action on Saturday at 1 p.m. when they welcome Portland to Gersten Pavilion for West Coast Conference action.
Spartan Volleyball Women Fall To Utah State Team In Four Sets San Jose—Kylie Miraldi and Sarah McAtee each recorded double-digit kills and the Spartans fought till the end against Utah State. The Aggies won the match, 25-20, 27-25, 22-25, 25-23, Thursday night at Spartan Gym. Miraldi led the Spartans with 15 kills and hit .407 for the match (15-4-27). She added two blocks, one solo and one assist, one ace and one dig. McAtee added a career-best 10 kills and hit .368 (10-3-19). She also had seven digs, two assists, one block and one ace. “I am really pleased with the way Kylie and Sarah played tonight,” said San Jose State head coach Oscar Crespo. “Kylie played phenomenal tonight, and Sarah played great and dug the ball nicely.” Caitlin Andrade recorded her seventh double-double of the year with 33 assists and 15 digs. She was just two kills short of a triple-double with eight kills on 10 attempts. Andrade also had a season-best five service aces. “Caitlin played great for us tonight and showed nice leadership on the floor tonight. She is getting better at distributing the ball and making smart decisions.” Taylor Japhet added nine kills, two solo blocks and seven digs. Alex Akana had eight kills, one block, one ace and one dig. Krista Miller had six kills and four digs, while Kristal Tsukano added 14 digs, seven assists and two kills. Courtney Zellmer had eight digs, two assists and an ace, while Asia Casino had five assists and a dig. Katie Turner recorded a dig, while Kaci Miller had a block assist After losing the first set, the Spartans came out fighting in the second, took a 5-1 lead and maintained a 10-5 lead on an Akana kill. There were four lead changes and 10 ties in the set. The Spartans tied the set at 23-23 and the two teams tied the set two more times before the Aggies won the set 27-25. After the intermission, the two teams played it close early in the third set, but Utah State took and early 15-9 lead. The Spartans then slowly chipped away at the Aggie lead and tied the match at 19-19. An Akana service ace gave the team the lead for good at 22-21, and Miraldi’s kills gave the Spartans the third set win at 25-22. The fourth set featured the Spartans jumping out to an early 7-0 lead on strong serving by Andrade that included three consecutive service aces. With the Spartans up 13-10, Utah State’s Lori Wilson-Beckstrom served five consecutive points to give Utah State a 15-13 lead. San Jose State fought back and tied the match at 23-23 before Wilson-Beckstrom served an ace for point 24, and Utah State won on a Liz McArthur ace. San Jose State continues at home Saturday night with a match against Nevada at 7 p.m. at Spartan Gym, located on the corner of Fourth and San Carlos Streets. Live stats and audio will be available on www.sjsuspartans.com. AGATE WAC Match Utah State def. San Jose State – 25-20, 27-25, 22-25, 25-23. Kills – Utah State – Liz McArthur 20. San Jose State – Kylie Miraldi 15, Sarah McAtee 10. Records – Utah State 14-12, 5-8; San Jose State 1-22, 1-11.
