WEEKLY AGGIE UPDATE - NOVEMBER 21, 2022
Weekly Aggie Update
FOOTBALL
Contact: Doug Hoffman - (435) 797-3714
This Week
Fri., Nov. 25 --- at Boise State, 10 a.m. (CBS)
• Utah State football (6-5, 5-2 MW) concludes Mountain West play this week as it plays at Boise State (8-3, 7-0 MW) on Friday, Nov. 25, at 10 a.m. USU is 5-21 all-time against BSU, including a 3-10 road record. The game will be televised nationally on CBS.
Last Week
W, 35-31 --- SAN JOSÉ STATE
• Graduate senior running back Calvin Tyler Jr. scored on a 3-yard run with 2:49 left in the game to lift Utah State to a thrilling 35-31 home win against San José State last weekend. With the win, the Aggies became bowl eligible for the 10th time in the last 12 years. USU extended its winning streak to 10 in a row against SJSU and is now 20-20-1 all-time against the Spartans, including 12-8 at home. Tyler led Utah State's rushing attack as he gained 125 yards and a career-high three touchdowns on 30 carries. As a team, the Aggies finished with 186 yards rushing. Junior quarterback Cooper Legas was 23-of-35 for a career-high 244 yards and one touchdown, to go along with two interceptions. Legas also had career highs in both completions and attempts. Utah State graduate senior wide receiver Brian Cobbs caught a career-high-tying 10 passes for 122 yards as the Aggies finished with 430 yards of total offense and held the Spartans to 341 yards (257 passing, 84 rushing). True freshman linebacker Max Alford paced the Aggies' defense with seven tackles, including 0.5 tackles for loss. Graduate junior defensive end Daniel Grzesiak added six stops, including 2.0 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks, while senior defensive tackle Hale Motu'apuaka had a career-high-tying 2.0 sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss as part of his five total stops. Utah State's defense finished the game with a season-high five sacks to go along with six pass breakups.
MEN'S BASKETBALL
Contact: Ashley Springer - (435) 797-5547
Tues., Nov. 22 --- ORAL ROBERTS, 7 p.m. (MWN)
• Utah State men's basketball (4-0, 0-0 MW) hosts Oral Roberts (3-2, 0-0 Summit League) on Tuesday, Nov. 22, at 7 p.m. All-time, the Aggies are 6-1 against the Golden Eagles. The game will be streamed live on the Mountain West Network and available at www.utahstateaggies.com/watch.
Last Week
W, 96-74 --- SANTA CLARA
W, 91-89 (OT) --- at San Diego
• Utah State posted a 2-0 record last week with a 96-74 home win against Santa Clara and a 91-89 overtime win at San Diego. Against the Broncos, USU shot 51.4 percent (36-of-70) from the field, 38.7 percent (12-of-31) from behind the 3-point line and 75.0 percent (12-of-16) at the free throw line, while SCU shot 40.0 percent (26-of-65) from the floor, 31.8 percent (7-of-22) from behind the arc and 71.4 percent (15-of-21) at the charity stripe. Graduate forward Taylor Funk led the Aggies with 22 points and 12 rebounds. Three more Aggies scored in double figures in junior guard Steven Ashworth (18), graduate forward Dan Akin (13) and senior center Trevin Dorius (11). Against San Diego, USU shot 51.7 percent (31-of-60) from the field, 48.3 percent (14-of-29) from behind the arc and 57.7 percent (15-of-26) at the free throw line, while USD shot 41.3 percent (31-of-75) from the floor, 46.4 percent (13-of-28) from behind the 3-point line and 73.7 percent (14-of-19) at the free throw line. Akin led USU with 21 points and 15 rebounds, while three more Aggies scored in double figures in Funk (20), junior guard Max Shulga (20) and Ashworth (10).
VOLLEYBALL
Contact: Ashley Springer - (435) 797-5547
This Week
2022 Mountain West Tournament, Fort Collins, Colorado
Wed., Nov. 23 --- vs. #5 New Mexico, Quarterfinals, 1 p.m. (MWN)
Thur., Nov. 24 --- vs. #1 UNLV, Semifinals, 1 p.m. (MWN)
Fri., Nov. 25 --- vs. TBA, Championship, 6:30 p.m. (MWN)
• Utah State volleyball (19-10, 11-7 MW) will be the No. 4 seed at the Mountain West Tournament, held in Colorado Springs, Colorado, from Wednesday through Friday, Nov. 23-25. USU will begin the tournament on Wednesday, Nov. 23, at 1 p.m. (MT) against fifth-seeded New Mexico (17-11, 8-10 MW). If USU advances, it would top-seeded UNLV (26-3, 17-1) on Thursday, Nov. 24, at 1 p.m., and the championship match will be on Friday, Nov. 25, at 6:30 p.m. Every match during the tournament will be streamed on the Mountain West Network, while USU's matches will be available online at www.utahstateaggies.com/watch.
Last Week
L, 1-3 --- at New Mexico
L, 1-3 --- at Air Force
• Utah State went 0-2 last week with 3-1 losses at New Mexico and at Air Force. Against New Mexico, USU hit .219 (59-26-151), while UNM hit .265 (50-14-136). Three Aggies finished the night with double-digit kills as sophomore opposite side hitter Adna Mehmedovic had 15, senior outside hitter Shelby Capllonch had 13 and junior outside Tatum Stall had 12. Three Aggies logged double-doubles as Capllonch had 13 digs, freshman setter Leah Wilton-LaBoy had 25 assists and 13 digs and sophomore setter Beatriz Rodrigues had 16 assists and 10 digs. Redshirt sophomore libero Jordi Holdaway added 10 digs, while graduate middle blocker Myrthe Maring led the squad with seven blocks. Against Air Force, the Aggies hit .218 (64-28-165), while the Falcons hit .324 (61-14-145). Four Aggies logged double-digit kills, as Mehmedovic had a career-high-tying 17, Stall had 15, Capllonch had 11 and senior middle blocker Kennedi Boyd, who hit .588 in the match, had 10. Boyd and Maring led USU with three blocks each. Rodrigues recorded a double-double of 20 assists and 10 digs. Holdaway had a match-best 25 digs, while Wilton-LaBoy had a team-high 26 assists and three service aces.
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Contact: Ajay Salvesen - (435) 797-2066
This Week
Wed., Nov. 23 --- BALL STATE, 2 p.m. (MWN)
Sat., Nov. 26 --- at USC, 2 p.m. (MT)
• Utah State's women's basketball (1-3, 0-0 MW) continues its 2022-23 season this week as it hosts Ball State (2-1) on Wednesday, Nov. 23, at 2 p.m., and plays at USC (4-0) on Saturday, Nov. 26, at 2 p.m. (MT). USU is 0-1 all-time against the Cardinals and 0-3 all-time against the Trojans. All home games against will be streamed live on the Mountain West Network and available at www.utahstateaggies.com/watch.
Last Week
L, 57-95 --- at Utah Tech
L, 57-63 --- at Arkansas State
• Utah State posted an 0-2 record last week with a 95-57 loss at Utah Tech and a 63-57 loss at Arkansas State. Against the Trailblazers, graduate guard Mayson Kimball led the way for the Aggies with 14 points, while graduate senior guard Maria Carvalho had 13 points and eight rebounds. USU shot 31.0 percent from the field (22-of-71), 21.2 percent from 3-point range (7-of-33) and 60.0 percent at the free-throw line (6-of-10). The Trailblazers shot 57.4 percent from the field (39-of-68), 50.0 percent from behind the arc (11-of-22) and 60.0 from the line (6-of-10). Against the Red Wolves, the Aggies had a pair of double-doubles from junior guards Olivia Wikstrom and Tamiah Robinson, as Wikstrom finished with a team-high 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Robinson had 10 points and 10 rebounds. Graduate guard Maria Carvalho also scored 10 points, to go along with eight rebounds. Utah State shot 31.7 percent from the field (19-of-60), including 45.5 percent from 3-point land (10--of-22) and 75.0 percent at the free throw line (9-of-12). The Red Wolves connected on 38.7 percent of their shots (24--of-62), including 18.8 percent from the arc (3-of-16) and 70.6 percent at the charity stripe (12-of-17).
CROSS COUNTRY
Contact: Wade Denniston - (435) 797-1361
Last Week
M: 26th/31; W: NTS --- at NCAA Championships, Stillwater, Oklahoma
• Utah State's men's cross country team concluded its 2022 season by placing 26th at the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships held weekend in Stillwater, Oklahoma. The only team not ranked heading into the finals, the Aggies finished with 618 points, beating five ranked squads in the process. USU defeated both Alabama (27th; 683 points) and Michigan (29th, 708 points), which were tied for 25th coming into Saturday's finals, along with No. 22 Georgetown (31st; 752 points), No. 24 Princeton (30th; 712 points) and No. 27 Colorado State (28th; 704 points). After the closest finish in the 85-year history of the NCAA Cross Country Championships, No. 2 Northern Arizona won the men's title. The Lumberjacks and No. 4 Oklahoma State both scored 83 points, which meant that, for the first time ever, the national champion would be crowned by tiebreaker: a head-to-head matchup of each team's scorers, one through five. Junior Yonas Mogos led the Aggies with an 85th-place finish, clocking 30:06.3 over the 10K course. Senior Camren Todd was the second Aggie to cross the finish line as he placed 125th with a time of 30:25.6. Mogos and Todd were followed by junior Max Wehrli in 147th (30:35.7), senior Mark Crandall in 158th (30:40.6) and sophomore Brennan Benson in 213th (31:13.1). Other Aggie finishers included senior Caleb Garnica in 214th (31:17.3) and grad senior Darren Harman in 218th (31:21.0). Senior Mica Rivera and sophomore Ana Weaver represented Utah State on the women's side as individual competitors. Weaver placed 53rd with a time of 20:17.5 on the 6K course, while Rivera finished 201st with a time of 21:21.4.
