SAN DIEGO, California – Utah State volleyball moved to 11-0 in Mountain West play with a 3-1 (23-25, 25-20, 25-20, 25-23) victory over San Diego State on Thursday night at Peterson Gym, becoming the first team in program history to begin a conference season 11-0.

With the victory, USU maintained a two-game lead in the MW standings with seven matches remaining in the regular season.

Head coach Rob Neilson
"This is a special group of people, so it's fun to see them accomplish historic things! San Diego State challenged us in a lot of great ways that will help us continue to grow towards our goals. I'm proud and grateful to coach this group of hard working, powerful, resilient and strong women!"

Set One
Neither side managed to create much distance in the opening frame as San Diego State, who entered Thursday in sole possession of third place in the MW standings, became the first team to build even a three-point lead with a 16-13 advantage over halfway through the set. The Aggies battled back with a 4-1 run featuring an ace from senior middle blocker Tierney Barlow. USU was then able to reclaim the lead at 22-21 off a block from Barlow and sophomore outside hitter Andrea Simovski. The Aztecs, however, claimed four of the next five rallies to ultimately take the opening set, 25-23.

Set Two
USU held a 15-11 edge in the set following kills from sophomore opposite side hitter Loryn Helgesen and sophomore setter Kaylie Kofe plus another Barlow block. SDSU then used a 5-0 burst to jump back in front. The Aggies then responded to continue a run of having not lost back-to-back sets since Oct. 4 against Boise State. Simovski recorded a kill to halt the Aztec run before Barlow and sophomore outside hitter Mara Štiglic combined for a block to kickstart a 4-0 Aggie run. Utah State's defense forced SDSU into four attacking errors in the final 12 rallies of the set. Helgesen then recorded two kills to complete the 25-20 win for USU, tying the match at one set apiece.

Set Three
After two back-and-forth affairs to open the match, Utah State managed to steadily maintain the advantage through the third frame, using four separate 3-0 spurts to eventually take the set, 25-20. Kills from Simovski and Helgesen pushed USU ahead early on before another Simovski kill and a Helgesen ace answered an Aztec run to retain the lead for USU. A Kofe ace and a block from Helgesen and redshirt freshman middle blocker Lauren Larkin keyed another run before back-to-back Barlow kills capped Utah State's final 3-0 burst of the set and gave the Aggies their largest lead at 19-12. The Aztecs fought off multiple set points in the final stages before a service error delivered Utah State the set and a 2-1 lead in the match.

Set Four
San Diego State seemed determined to force a fifth set, using a 6-1 run to go up 13-8 in set number four. As they have consistently done through conference play, the Aggies clawed back, using a block from Helgesen and Larkin and another ace from Simovski to trim the deficit down to two points. Then, USU completely flipped the script with a 6-0 blitzing to jump ahead by three. Štiglic recorded four kills to power the run while the Aggie defense forced a pair of attacking errors from SDSU. The Aztecs responded with three-straight points to tie it at 22 before Helgesen regained momentum for USU with a kill, allowing Simovski to record two final kills to seal the 25-23 set win and a 3-1 road victory.

Quick Notes

• Utah State hit .272 for the match, their eighth match of MW play with over a .250 hitting percentage. The Aggies are now hitting .251 on the season, a mark which would break the current program record of .238 set in 2016.
• Štiglic, Simovski and Helgesen each finished with 13 kills to lead the Aggies, marking the 11th match this season in which three Aggies have finished with double-digit kills.
• Štiglic also led USU with a .355 hitting percentage while Simovski and Helgesen finished with marks of .320 and .242, respectively. Barlow also added seven kills on a .278 hitting percentage.
• Helgesen and Simovski each recorded two service aces to tie for the team lead.
• Junior libero/defensive specialist Kendel Thompson posted a team-high 14 digs while Simovski finished with nine, one short of recording her seventh double-double of the season.
• Kofe posted 39 assists to again lead the Aggie offense.
• Larkin led USU with five blocks while Helgesen and Barlow followed close behind with four apiece. Barlow also tied her season-high with two solo blocks.
• The Aggies extended their winning streak to 12 matches, now the sixth-longest streak in program history and the longest since winning 14 in a row in 2023.
• Utah State improved to 8-1 in true road matches on the year, tying for the eighth-best road record by winning percentage in the nation. USU's .889 road winning percentage would also be a program record for a season, topping the previous mark of .762 (16-5) set in 1977.
• USU's previous record start to a conference season came in 1979 when the Aggies went an undefeated 10-0 in the Intermountain Athletic Conference. 

Up Next
Utah State travels to Las Vegas to take on UNLV on Saturday, Nov. 1, at 1 p.m. (MT).

Season tickets, mini-plans, and single-game tickets are on sale now and can be purchased here or by contacting the USU Ticket Office at 435-797-0305.

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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