TEMPE, Arizona – Utah State volleyball fought tough to extend their season but ultimately fell short against No. 2-seeded Arizona State, 3-1 (25-15, 25-18, 22-25, 25-15), in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday night at Desert Financial Arena.

The Aggies end the season with a 24-8 record, tied alongside the 2023 and 2010 seasons for the most wins by the program since 1982. 

Set One
The Aggies began the match with back-to-back kills courtesy of sophomore outside hitter Mara Štiglic and sophomore opposite side hitter Loryn Helgesen. The Sun Devils took their first lead with a 4-0 run and eventually forced a USU timeout after building a 14-9 lead. Utah State battled back, cutting the deficit to one with four-straight points out of the timeout including an ace by junior libero/defensive specialist Kendel Thompson and a block by Helgesen and senior middle blocker Tierney Barlow. The second-seeded Sun Devils took over, however, scoring on 11 of the final 13 rallies of the set to take a 1-0 lead for the match.

Set Two
Arizona State continued to play to the level expected of AVCA's No. 8-ranked team, opening up the second set with three-straight points. The Aggies responded with Štiglic supplying three kills for USU's first three points. ASU maintained pressure with a 5-1 stretch to go up 9-4 early in the frame. Utah State was able to then alternate the ensuing 12 rallies with the Sun Devils but were unable to build a run to cut into the lead before ASU again extended their advantage with another 5-1 burst, ultimately taking the second set, 25-18. 

Set Three
Down to their final set, the Aggies came out with a spirited effort in the third set. After trading points with the Sun Devils, USU built a lead with a 5-1 stretch kickstarted by a Barlow ace and a block by sophomore setter Kaylie Kofe and redshirt freshman middle blocker Lauren Larkin. Štiglic then recorded back-to-back kills to give the Aggies a three-point lead. Despite Arizona State tying the set with three unanswered points, Utah State didn't flinch and score three-straight of their own. ASU again returned serve, this time scoring four-straight to take a one-point lead. Still, USU refused to go away, battling point-by-point with the Sun Devils until using a 5-1 burst to win the set, 25-22. Barlow posted two kills while Štiglic and Helgesen each also added a kill before a bad set from ASU secured the set for Utah State and sent the match to a fourth frame. 

Set Four
The fight continued in the fourth frame as Utah State trimmed an Arizona State lead to a single point following a kill by Štiglic and an ace from Kofe. The Sun Devils, however, responded with a 9-1 stretch to grab firm control of the set. The Aggies were unable to mount a comeback as ASU eventually took the set, 25-15, to end the match.

Quick Notes

• Utah State hit .227 for the match, ending the season with a mark of .274, setting a new program record and breaking the previous mark of .238 set in 2016.
• Helgesen led USU with 19 kills, hitting .429 on 35 total attempts and adding three digs and a block.
• Štiglic added 17 kills on a .343 hitting percentage, also posting four digs.
• Barlow and Kofe tied for the team lead with two blocks apiece. Barlow also added six kills, an ace and a dig while Kofe finished with 41 assists, one ace and nine digs. 
• Sophomore outside hitter Andrea Simovski led the Aggies with two aces, also adding eight kills, nine digs and two assists.
• Thompson posted a team-high 12 digs, also finishing with five assists and an ace.
• Kofe finished the season with 1,330 total assists, ranking fifth-most all-time for a single season at USU and the most since 2010. Kofe already ranks eighth all-time for career assists at Utah State with 2,290.
• Barlow finished the season with a program-record-breaking .444 hitting percentage, shattering the previous mark of .375 (min. 5 attempts per set) held by Denae Mohlman and set in 1997. Barlow is also now the career record holder for hitting percentage, now sitting at .418 for her career at Utah State, topping current assistant coach/director of operations Kennedi Hansen's career mark of .362 (min. 1,000 attacks).
• Helgesen also finished the season inside the top 10 all-time for hitting percent, ranking ninth all-time at USU with a .295 hitting percentage.
• Both Simovski and Thompson finished the season in top-10 all-time for service aces, ranking in ties for sixth and ninth all-time at USU with 42 and 41 aces on the year, respectively.
• Utah State is now 3-7 in the NCAA Tournament all-time and recorded their first win in the Tournament this year since defeating BYU in Salt Lake City in 2001. USU also defeated Missouri the year prior in Provo, Utah. 

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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