LARAMIE, Wyoming – Down 2-0 after the second set, Utah State volleyball saw their hopes of a regular season Mountain West title slipping away. Over the next three sets, however, the Aggies wrestled back their title hopes with a reverse sweep of Wyoming, 3-2 (21-25, 19-25, 25-21, 25-14, 15-11), on Thursday night at the UniWyo Sports Complex.
 
The win keeps USU's regular season title hopes alive as the Aggies will take on Colorado State on Saturday at noon to claim a share of a Mountain West championship.
 
Head coach Rob Neilson
"This was an important win for our team. Wyoming played phenomenally, especially in the second set. Our team showed a ton of maturity to stay locked in and keep working. We're excited to keep championship hopes alive and to go play in a tough environment, against a tough team on Saturday. I'm really proud of this group. Let's go, Aggies!"
 
Set One
The Cowgirls grasped control early in the first set with a 7-1 burst to take a 10-4 advantage. The Aggies fought back with a pair of 4-1 runs plus a 4-0 run later in the set, trimming the deficit to only three points on several occasions but could not complete the comeback as Wyoming took set one, 25-21.
 
Set Two
The second frame mirrored the first as another early Cowgirl run gave the home side early control. Wyoming led 11-3 before USU again attempted a comeback with runs of 4-1 and 3-0, but Utah State was unable to threaten the lead as the Cowgirls went up 2-0 in the match with the 25-19 victory.
 
Set Three
A 4-1 run from Wyoming threatened a swift end to the match before the Aggies buckled down and responded with a 9-5 stretch to take the lead. After grabbing the advantage, USU never relinquished it, thwarting any comeback attempts before Wyoming could regain momentum. Utah State then firmly took control with a 5-1 burst to go up, 23-18. Senior Adna Mehmedovic then pushed the Aggies over the finish line with a pair of kills, giving USU the 25-21 win to extend the match.
 
Set Four
After battling through a close set in the third frame, the Aggies took set four in dominant fashion. USU jumped in front early with a 6-1 run before Wyoming fought back to a 9-9 tie. The Cowgirls could not grab the lead, however, as Utah State answered with a 3-0 spurt. Wyoming again clawed back to a tie before Utah State then claimed 13 of the next 15 points to turn the set into a 25-14 rout. Graduate senior Kelsey Watson recorded a block and a pair of kills to kickstart the run while each of sophomore Kendel Thompson and freshmen Delaney Lawson and Kaylie Kofe recorded aces from the service line. Mehmedovic and freshman Andrea Simovski both put down a pair of kills in USU's final five points to help force a fifth set.
 
Set Five
In the shortened fifth set, Utah State crucially jumped out first to take a 3-0 lead. A kill and block from Mehmedovic sandwiched a Watson kill to give USU the early lead. Wyoming trimmed the lead to a single point at 6-5 before the Aggies regained control with a 4-0 run featuring back-to-back kills from junior Kaylie Ray. After a 3-0 Cowgirl run, Utah State returned the favor with a 3-0 run the included two aces from Kofe. Mehmedovic again came through late with a pair of kills to give the Aggies the 15-11 win and preserve the team's MW title hopes.
 
Quick Notes

• With the win, the Aggies move to 12-5 in Mountain West play and remain tied with Fresno State for second place in the conference standings. Utah State sits one game behind Colorado State for first place in the conference and would claim a share of the MW regular season title with a win at the Rams on Saturday.
• Utah State had five players record double-digit kills, their first time with five double-digit killers this season.
• Ray led the Aggies in kills for the third match in a row, finishing with 15 while Mehmedovic finished close behind with 14. Simovski and Watson each finished with 11 kills and junior Tierney Barlow finished with 10 kills in her return to her former school.
• All five hitters also hit at least .366 or better, and each of Mehmedovic, Simovski, Watson and Barlow hit over .475. Mehmedovic hit over .600 for just the second time in her career.
• Kofe finished with 56 assists, one off of her career-high, but did set a career-high with four aces from the service line.
• Thompson was the lone Aggie to reach double figures in digs, finishing with 12. Kofe added eight and both Simovski and Lawson ended with seven digs apiece.
• Mehmedovic and Watson tied for the team lead with four blocks each.

 
Up Next
The Aggies play for a share of a regular season title at Colorado State on Saturday, Nov. 23, at noon. Utah State will then prepare for the Mountain West Tournament to take place on Wednesday-Saturday, Nov. 27-30, in Las Vegas.
 
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.
 
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