LOGAN, Utah – Utah State volleyball (13-5, 5-2 Mountain West) closed out its three-match homestand with a thrilling 3-2 victory over Boise State (13-5, 5-2 MW) on Tuesday night.
"We've talked a lot about consistency and ability to execute over time," head coach
Rob Neilson said. "That's a really good Boise State team. They're physical. They present a lot of problems. I was proud of our group and how we played."
The Broncos took an early 5-1 lead in set one, but the Aggies slowly chipped away at the margin until a kill from junior outside hitter
Tatum Stall and a service ace from redshirt sophomore libero
Jordi Holdaway tied it up at 10-apiece. A 3-0 USU run, fueled by back-to-back kills from senior opposite side hitter
Kylee Stokes and a Boise State attacking error, later gave Utah State its first lead of the set 14-13. The teams went back and forth until a 4-1 Aggie spurt put USU on top 22-20. The Broncos responded with a 5-1 run of their own to win 25-23.
A 6-1 Utah State run early in set two gave USU the 9-4 lead. After Boise State cut the lead to two, back-to-back kills from Stall and senior outside
Shelby Capllonch followed by a Stall ace extended the Aggie edge to 13-8. The Broncos would once again trim the margin to two, but a BSU attacking error and kill from senior middle blocker
Kennedi Boyd pushed the lead out to 19-15. The teams traded points until a Bronco service error gave the Aggies set point 24-19. Boise State scored three-straight points, but redshirt freshman outside
Kaylie Ray evened the match at 1-1 with a kill for the 25-22 USU set-two win.
USU was dominant in set three, taking a 12-2 lead after a block from graduate opposite
Emilee Turner and redshirt freshman middle blocker
Bella Wooden, kills from Turner, Stall and Stokes, and service aces from Holdaway and sophomore setter
Beatriz Rodrigues. The teams then went back and forth until Utah State held the 19-10 advantage. The Aggies closed out the set with a 6-0 run for the 25-10 victory.
A 5-0 run in set four gave Utah State the 18-13 lead. The Broncos, however, weren't ready to load the bus yet, closing out the set with a 7-2 run to win the fourth 27-25.
The teams traded point to open the final set until a 6-0 USU spurt, capped by a Capllonch block, gave Utah State the 9-3 advantage. Kills from Wooden and freshman setter
Leah Wilton-LaBoy later extended the Aggie margin to eight at 13-5. A hammer from sophomore opposite side hitter
Adna Mehmedovic gave USU match point and the Aggies put the match to bed after a Bronco service error as Utah State won the fifth 15-7.
"It was such good energy," Holdaway said. "Our team was altogether unified. We really just had a goal in mind and went after it tonight."
Overall, USU hit .283 (68-19-173), while holding BSU to a .219 (59-22-169) mark. Stokes led Utah State with 15 kills, hitting .464. Two Aggies posted double-doubles as Stall had 13 kills and 14 digs, while Wilton-LaBoy had 26 assists and 10 digs. Rodrigues was one dig shy of a double, finishing the match with 24 assists and nine digs.
Defensively, the Aggies were led by Holdaway with 22 digs, Capllonch with 21 digs and Boyd with four blocks.
USU next travels to Las Vegas, Nevada, to take on UNLV (14-3, 5-1 MW) on Thursday, Oct. 13, at 7:30 p.m.
Fans can follow the Aggie volleyball program on Twitter, @USUVolleyball, on Facebook at /USUVolleyball or on Instagram, @usuvolleyball. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program on Twitter, @USUAthletics, Facebook at /USUAthletics and on Instagram, @USUAthletics.
-USU-
