Box Score

LOGAN, Utah - Utah State women's volleyball hosted its 2015 home finale on Saturday night and suffered a 3-1 (25-22, 25-19, 23-25, 25-19) defeat to Air Force. The loss drops the Aggies to 6-25 on the year and 2-15 in the Mountain West with one more match remaining in the 2015 campaign.

USU struggled to find its offensive groove, hitting .115 (50-32-156) on the night with Air Force collecting 16.0 blocks. The funk allowed the Falcons to string together runs that ultimately spelled defeat for the Aggies during the contest.

Utah State opened the match strong with three straight points behind kills by sophomore outside Rachel Gale and freshman middle Lauren O'Brien. The Aggies led for most of the first set until Air Force overcame a 17-14 USU lead with a 5-0 run to take a 19-17 lead behind four Utah State attacking errors. USU came back to tie the set again at 21-21, but the Falcons were able to close out the set with a 4-1 run for the 25-22 victory.

Utah State had another lead in the second, 6-4, but it was erased by a 4-0 Air Force run, giving the visitors an 8-6 advantage. Air Force never trailed again in the set, going into the break up 2-0 with the 25-19 victory.

Utah State was most efficient on the night in the third set, hitting .234 (17-6-47) behind strong showings from sophomore right side Kayla DeCoursey (5-1-11) and freshman outside Simone Gibeau (6-1-12). However, even with the offense, the Aggies still had to fight to keep a lead. The teams battled through 15 ties and five lead changes in the set, including a late 21-21 deadlock. Utah State used back-to-back kills from Gibeau and DeCoursey to break the tie and then used a finishing kill by Gibeau at 24-23 to take the set, 25-23.

Air Force used a five-point run in the fourth set to create a cushion, breaking a 4-4 tie and turning it into a 9-4 lead and took its first match point at 24-15. The Aggies continued to fight and scored four straight, by way of a pair of kills by Gale and a service ace by junior setter Erica Moscoso, bringing the score to 24-19. However, the run ended on a closing attacking error by the Aggies, giving Air Force the 25-19 victory.

Gale and DeCoursey paced the Utah State offense with 14 and 12 kills, respectively, while Gale also logged a career-high 16 digs for her fourth double-double of the season. Junior libero Hannah Gleason and sophomore defensive specialist Maddie Day also recorded double-digit digs, finishing the night with 19 and 10, respectively, as the Aggie defense recorded 73 to Air Force's 68.

Air Force hit .245 (55-18-151) during the match and was led by sophomore outside Shelley Spires with 21 kills and senior outside Akokwe Clement with 18. Senior libero Rachel Bates led the Falcons' back line with a match-high 29 assists and sophomore middle Piper Heineck led Air Force at the net with 12 blocks.

Utah State will have one more match in the 2015 season, traveling to Boise State to face the Broncos on Tuesday, Nov. 24, at 7 p.m.

Fans can follow the Aggie volleyball program on Twitter @USUVolleyball, on Facebook at USUVolleyball or on Instagram at @usuvolleyball. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program at @USUAthletics, on Facebook at Utah State University Athletics or on Instagram at @USUAthletics.