LOGAN, Utah – Utah State volleyball swept the weekly awards from the Mountain West this week. Junior middle blocker Tierney Barlow was named the Offensive Player of the Week, graduate senior middle blocker Kelsey Watson was named the Defensive Player of the Week, and freshman outside hitter Andrea Simovski earned Freshman of the Week honors. The three weekly honors are the first for Utah State this season. 
 
The Aggies went 2-0 last week with home wins over Nevada and Boise State. Across the two matches, Barlow hit .643 and finished with 19 kills on the week, plus two aces, eight blocks and three digs. Against the Wolf Pack, Barlow recorded zero attack errors across 10 attempts, finishing with six kills on a .600 hitting percentage with one ace and three blocks. Barlow followed up the game by hitting .667 against the Broncos with 13 kills and one ace, adding five blocks. Barlow averaged 2.71 kills and 3.71 points per set across the two matches and came through in the clutch for the Aggies. In the third set against Nevada, Barlow recorded three kills and an ace, while in the final set against the Broncos, she had six kills, including four of USU's first five points.
 
Watson was named the Defensive Player of the Week after she led USU with 11 total blocks during Utah State's pair of wins. Watson averaged 1.57 blocks per set across the two matches. Watson recorded five blocks against the Wolf Pack, adding one dig, to help USU hold Nevada to a .143 hitting percentage. During the second set, Watson had four blocks, including two of USU's first three points in the set and also the final point. Against the Broncos, Watson finished with six blocks to help the Aggies hold Boise State to a .151 hitting percentage, their second-lowest mark of the conference season.
 
Simovski earned Freshman of the Week honors after posting a .368 hitting percentage with 29 kills, averaging 4.14 kills and 4.50 points per set for the week. Simovski also added 11 digs, three blocks and one ace in the two matches. Against the Wolf Pack, Simovski hit .600 with zero attack errors, finishing with a line of nine kills on just 15 attempts and adding seven digs and one ace. Simovski help set the tone for the match by recording five kills in the first set. Against the Broncos, Simovski hit the 20-kill mark for the third match this season, becoming just the third Aggie to hit 20 or more kills in three matches in one season since USU joined in the MW in 2013. Simovski finished with 20 kills against the Broncos while hitting .286 on 42 attempts, also adding four digs and two blocks. She recorded three kills across four rallies late in the fourth set to preserve a one-point USU lead en route to the 25-22 win.
 
Up Next
The Aggies head back on the road to take on Air Force on Thursday, Nov. 7, at 6 p.m., before concluding the week at New Mexico on Saturday, Nov. 9, at 1 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 -