LOGAN, Utah — In the team's home opener at the Wayne Estes Center, Utah State volleyball fell to Cal, 3-1.
 
Set One
The opening frame showed little separation between the two teams as neither side led by more than two points until Cal built an 18-15 lead late in the set. After USU trimmed the deficit back to a single point, Cal captured the first set courtesy of a 6-2 run to close the frame, 25-20.
 
Set Two
The Aggies and Golden Bears exchanged runs at the start of the second set. A 6-2 Cal run allowed the visitors to build an 11-7 lead before USU utilized a 6-2 burst of their own to square the set at 14 apiece. The Golden Bears then took control of the match, reeling off an 11-2 run to take set two, 25-16.
 
Set Three
Needing a win to extend the match, Utah State showed its mettle in the third set, turning a 9-8 deficit into five-point advantage with a 9-3 run. After the Golden bears battled back to tie the match at 20, threatening a sweep, the Aggies again responded to close out the set with a 5-0 run to take the third frame, 25-20.
 
Set Four
In the final frame of the match, Cal took early control via an 8-2 run to take a five-point lead. The Aggies were unable to trim the lead to fewer than four as the Golden Bears clinched the match with a 25-16 win.
 
QUICK NOTES

• Freshman Loryn Helgesen led the team with 14 kills, becoming the fourth different Aggie to lead the team in kills so far this season.
• Freshman Jagoda Bialek again led the Aggies in total digs, her fourth-straight match doing so to open her career, tying alongside freshman Delaney Lawson with 10 digs.
• Junior Tierney Barlow recorded a .600 hitting percentage, recording six kills on 10 attempts with no errors to lead USU in hitting percentage among players with five or more attempts. Barlow also led the team with two service aces.
• Graduate senior Kelsey Watson recorded six blocks on the night, including a career-high five solo blocks. Watson has led Utah State in blocks in each of the team's first four matches.
• Sophomore Olivia Tukuafu recorded a team-high 19 assists, her third time leading the team in assists. Freshman Kate Lijic reached double-digit assists for the second-straight match, finishing with 13.
• Freshman Andrea Simovski narrowly missed her second career double-double, finishing with nine kills and nine digs.

 
UP NEXT
Utah State welcomes a top-10 squad to the Wayne Estes Center for the first time since 2014 as they take on No. 8 Purdue on Saturday, Sept. 7, at 5 p.m. (MT).
 
Season and single-game tickets are available and can be purchased here.
 
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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