SAN DIEGO – After falling behind by two sets and threatening to drop their first three matches of Mountain West play, Utah State volleyball buckled down and found its rhythm. The Aggies jumped out to quick leads in each of the remaining three sets, holding on for a memorable comeback to defeat San Diego State, 3-2 (21-25, 23-25, 27-25, 25-18, 15-12) on Thursday night at Aztec Court.
 
Head coach Rob Neilson
"It is such a joy to coach such a hardworking and fun-loving group. Seven five-set matches in a row is helping us to get the reps our young group needs to see and understand their ability to play at a high level. We're getting better every day."
 
Set One
The two sides exchanged runs through the opening set as Utah State jumped out to an immediate 4-1 lead before San Diego State responded with a 4-0 run to take their first lead of the contest. After USU retook the lead with a 4-0 run of their own, a 10-4 stretch from the Aztecs proved decisive as the home squad took set one, 25-21.
 
Set Two
The Aggies again took an early lead in the second set before the Aztecs again utilized a 4-0 burst to take a 10-7 lead. USU immediately scored the next three points to tie the match but were unable to fully steal the advantage from the Aztecs as SDSU built a five-point lead on several occasions. Trailing 23-18, however, Utah State reeled off five straight points to again tie the set before a pair of Aztec points clinched the set, 25-23, to put USU in a 2-0 hole for the match.
 
Set Three
At risk of dropping their third match to start conference play, USU came out in set three in total control, scoring the first six points of the set. The Aggies maintained at least a four-point lead for much of the duration of the set before SDSU clawed back late with a 4-0 run to tie the set at 24 apiece. In a do-or-die situation, freshman Delaney Lawson responded with a pair of kills to take the set for USU, 27-25.
 
Set Four
Utah State maintained momentum in set four, against bursting out to an early lead courtesy of an 11-2 run. USU's lead grew as large as 10 points at both 14-4 and 18-8. SDSU trimmed the lead to as close as five points late in the set before a kill from junior Tierney Barlow followed by a service ace from freshman Andrea Simovski clinched the 25-18 win to push the match to five sets.
 
Set Five
For the third straight set, the Aggies made the first move, using a 3-0 spurt to take the early advantage in the final frame. However, a 5-0 run from San Diego State menaced another five-set loss. Suddenly trailing at 9-7, the Aggies fought back with a 6-2 run to retake the lead, highlighted by a block and pair of kills from senior Kaylie Ray. Needing another two points to complete the reverse sweep, Simovski put the Aggies on the doorstep with a kill at the backline. Senior Adna Mehmedovic then painted the line for the final kill to clinch the 15-12 win.
 
Quick Notes

• Utah State has now played to five sets in seven consecutive matches. According to available research, this is believed to be the longest such streak in women's volleyball history at the Division I level.
• Freshman Kaylie Kofe set a new career high with 45 assists to lead USU. Kofe also recorded her third career double-double with 10 digs, also adding a team-high three aces from the service line.
• Simovski recorded the second double-double of her career with 10 kills and a team-high 16 digs, also adding two service aces.
• Sophomore Kendel Thompson was the third Aggie with double-digit digs, finishing with 13 to go with three assists and one ace.
• Mehmedovic led the Aggie attack with 16 digs on a season-high .500 hitting percentage. Along with Simovski, Lawson was the third Aggie to reach the 10-kill plateau, finishing with 10 kills. Lawson narrowly missed a double-double as she finished with nine digs.
• Freshman Ava Napierski led the Aggies with four total blocks on the night, also tying with junior Tierney Barlow for the team lead with one solo block apiece.
• Utah State has now won six straight matches against the Aztecs, including each of the past three matches in San Diego. Head coach Rob Neilson is now 7-1 all-time against SDSU.
• With the win, USU is now 4-10 on the season and 1-2 in MW play.

Up Next
Utah State remains on the road to take on UNLV (8-5, 1-1 MW) on Saturday, Oct. 5, at 2 p.m. The Rebels fell at Air Force, 3-1, on Thursday.
 
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 -