BACK IN ACTION
Utah State concludes a four-match home stand in Club Estes against Boise State on Thursday, Oct. 8, at 7 p.m., before the first of two byes during Pac-12 play.

AGGIES VS. EVERYONE
Boise State is Utah State's most common opponent among Pac-12 teams as the two sides have faced off 58 times prior to Thursday's match. The Broncos hold a slim 30-28 lead in an all-time series which has fluctuated between stretches of dominance by both sides. BSU won the first 14 meetings from 1985-98 before USU then went 14-3 on through 2010. The Broncos won 11 of 15 matches to start the pair's time together in the Mountain West but the Aggies have now won 10 of the past 12 matches. USU is 16-7 at home against the Broncos, winning each of the past four meetings in Club Estes.

Despite Utah State's recent run against Boise State, the series has remained incredibly tight as each of the past 12 matches has gone at least four sets and five have gone the full five sets. Utah State has proven clutch in those matches, pulling out the win in each of those five-set matches, including last season's win in Club Estes and a reverse sweep in the MW semifinals. The two sides have actually met three times in postseason play recently, with Boise State claiming opening-round four-set wins at the MW Tournament in 2021 and 2024 before USU's semifinal victory last season. 

PAC'S A PUNCH
The Pac-12 ranks as the fifth-best volleyball conference in the nation according to Massey Ratings, trailing only the Power 4 and tied alongside the Big East. The league boasts six teams in the top 100 of the power ratings with Utah State ranking 82nd in the nation along with Colorado State (37th), San Diego State (77th), Boise State (78th), Washington State (79th) and Oregon State (88th) all making the cut and Texas State (102nd) narrowly missing out.

LEADER OF THE PAC
Junior outside hitter Olivia Ruy was named the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week after leading USU with 37 total kills last week, averaging 4.11 per set and finishing with a .341 hitting percentage. She also added 12 blocks and seven digs. In USU's 3-1 win over Fresno State, Ruy posted 12 kills on a .273 hitting percentage and set a career-high with six blocks, also adding five digs in the contest. Ruy then had a career day in the Aggies' five-set match against Colorado State, finishing with a career-high 25 kills on a .382 hitting percentage and again tying her career-high with six blocks. Ruy's 25 kills are the most in a single match by an Aggie this season and the third-most by any Pac-12 player.

BLOCK PARTY
USU's block has come on strong in the past three matches, recording double-digit blocks in each contest. The Aggies recorded 12 blocks against Gonzaga, 16 against Fresno State and 10.5 against Colorado State. This is USU's first time recording double-digit blocks in three-straight matches since a streak of six-straight in 2024, while its 16 blocks against FS were the most by the Aggies since posting 17 against Weber State in 2023.

CAN I DIG IT? (YES YOU CAN)
Sophomore libero/defensive specialist Lily LaFlesch led Utah State with 49 total digs last week, topping 20 digs in both matches and averaging 5.44 digs per set for the week. She set a career-high with 29 digs against CSU, tying for the sixth-most digs by an Aggie during the 25-point, rally-scoring era (since 2008) and adding six assists and an ace. Her 29 digs are the second-most in a match by any Pac-12 player this season. LaFlesch also posted 20 digs in USU's win over Fresno State alongside five assists and two aces. USU recorded 94 digs in the match as a team, ranking as the second-most during the 25-point, rally-scoring era.

SET YOUR GOALS
Sophomore setter Silina Damuni is still re-adjusting to Division I volleyball. Damuni spent her freshman year at BYU in 2023 before departing on a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Fiji, only returning in March of this year. Since becoming the full-time setter, Damuni is averaging over 10 assists per set and has settled into role within the past few weeks, upping her average to 12.29 assists per set in USU's first week in Pac-12 play.

With Damuni out due to injury, senior setter Olivia Tukuafu stepped up with a career week. Tukuafu set career-highs with 42 assists, six kills on a .625 hitting percentage, two blocks and two aces in USU's win over Fresno State. She then re-set many of those career marks against Colorado State, finishing with 53 assists, nine kills and adding a career-best 15 digs and again adding two blocks. Tukuafu's two double-doubles are her first of the season and just the second and third of her career.

WHAT A DEBUT
Junior middle blocker Solia Angilau made her Aggie debut last week against Fresno State and tied her career-high with eight blocks in the contest. Angilau's stellar week continued against Colorado State, recording only her second career ace and setting a career-high with five digs.

WE HAVE YOU SURROUNDED
The Aggies have eight players averaging at least one kill per set during conference play. Junior outside hitters Olivia Ruy, Sami Blackett and Ava Nakai lead the way with 3.75, 3.50 and 2.70 kills per set, respectively. Junior middle blocker Ava Napierski has posted 2.43 kills per set, sophomore outside hitter Addy Cook is adding 1.80, and graduate middle blocker Sophie Scott has 1.44 kills per set to begin Pac-12 play. Stepping up due to injuries, senior setter Olivia Tukuafu and junior middle blocker Solia Angilau are averaging 1.67 and 1.22 kills per set.

ADVANTAGE AVA
Junior middle blocker Ava Napierski put together a career week in USU's first go around in Pac-12 play. Napierski recorded 17 kills on 28 total attempts without registering an attacking error. Against Texas State, she set a career-high with a .600 hitting percentage with six kills. Napierski then topped the performance with a .611 mark against Gonzaga, recording a career-high 11 kills on 18 attempts and adding a season-high six blocks.

EARLY TESTS
Utah State's nonconference schedule was one of the toughest in the nation as the Aggies faced the 23rd-toughest schedule according to Massey Ratings, tops in the Pac-12 and sixth among all non-P4 programs. In all, seven of USU's 10 nonconference opponents made the NCAA Tournament in 2025.

EXPECT AN IMPACT
Utah State had three players named to Pac-12 Preseason Impact List in juniors Sami Blackett, Ava Napierski and Olivia Ruy. Outside hitter Sami Blackett comes to Utah State after earning back-to-back First Team All-WAC honors for Utah Valley in her first two collegiate seasons. Middle blocker Ava Napierski returns as one of USU's most veteran players with 16 matches played, including 10 starts, over her first two seasons in Logan. Outside hitter Olivia Ruy joins the Aggies after spending 2025 at Maryland, playing in 24 matches and averaging over 2.0 kills per set for the Terrapins.

PAC-12 PICK 'EM
Utah State was picked to finish sixth out of nine teams in the Pac-12 preseason poll as voted by the league's coaches. The Aggies finished no lower than fourth in their last five seasons in the Mountain West and claimed regular season crowns in 2021, 2023 and 2025. This is the first season since 2021 in which USU has not been picked to finish top-two in the conference preseason poll.

THIS MUST BE THE PLACE
This year's Aggie roster features 10 players from the Beehive State, tied for the most for the team since having 11 Utahns on the roster in 2007. USU also had 10 players from Utah in 2008 and 2009. Last year's squad featured only five Utahns.

CONNECTIONS ACROSS SPORTS
Sophomore outside hitter Addy Cook is cousins with Utah State quarterback Grady Brosterhous.

A WHOLE NEW CREW
The Aggies welcome in 12 new players for the 2026 campaign, including nine transfers and three freshmen. Lauren Bodily (West Virginia), Silina Damuni (BYU), Olivia Ruy (Maryland) and Sophie Scott (Cal) join Utah State from P4 programs while USU also adds a plethora of experience with Solia Angilau (New Mexico), Sami Blackett (Utah Valley), Addy Cook (Wyoming) and Lily LaFlesch (Wyoming) joining the Aggies. Justýna Nováková joins as a junior following several years playing in her native Czechia while AC Gibbs, Taytum Nelson and Madi Rich arrive to USU as freshmen in 2026.

PAST MEETS PRESENT
A number of Aggies have previous connections prior to arriving in Logan. Both Addy Cook and Lily LaFleschplayed at Wyoming last season with each ranking third on the team in kills and digs per set, respectively. Juniors Sami Blackett and Ava Napierski also played together in high school with both playing their senior seasons at Orem HS as the duo finished top-two on the team in kills en route to a state title in 2023. Before Orem HS, Napierski played at Timpview HS alongside sophomore Silina Damuni where the pair won state titles in both 2020 and 2022. Senior Lauren Bodily and junior Olivia Ruy also shared the court while at Woods Cross HS, capping off their time together with a state semifinal run in 2021.

AGGIE CONNECTION
Taytum Nelson is continuing a family tradition of playing at Utah State. Her grandfather, Alan Parish, played three seasons for USU men's basketball in the 1960s, including the 1964-65 season with All-American and home court namesake Wayne Estes.

SUPER NOVAKOVA
Despite playing as an outside hitter, junior Justyna Novakova has ample experience as a libero, having played libero for the Czechia U20 through U22 national teams and also playing the position at the club level for VK Dukla Liberec.

NEW IN TOWN
Keith Smith was hired as the 12th head coach in Utah State volleyball history in January. Smith brings extensive experience working within the USA Volleyball pipeline and most recently served as an assistant coach at TCU in 2025, helping the Horned Frogs in a 21-11 record and an opening round win in the NCAA Tournament. He also has previous coaching stops at Auburn and Grand Canyon. Smith also played for the Lopes, ending his career as the school record holder with 4,484 assists.

Smith's time with Team USA has seen him working with the women's U21 national team at the 2025 NORCECA Pan American Cup, helping Team USA capture a gold medal in Costa Rica. This offseason, Smithalso served as the U18/U19 group leader at the National Team Development Program (NTDP).

FRESH INK IN THE RECORD BOOKS
Utah State ended the 2025 campaign with a .274 hitting percentage as a team, breaking the previous record of .238 set by the 2016 squad. The Aggies also hit .301 during conference play, ranking fifth all-time in Mountain West history. Middle blocker Tierney Barlow also set the single-season record for an individual, hitting .444 to top the previous mark of .375 (min. 5 attempts per set) held by Denae Mohlman and set in 1997. Barlow's hitting percentage over the full season ranks in a tie for third all-time among Mountain West players, while her .471 mark in conference ranks alone in third place all-time in MW history.

UP NEXT
Utah State returns from a weekend bye to begin a four-match road trip. The Aggies will begin at San Diego State on Thursday, Oct. 15, at 7 p.m. (MT), before their first repeat conference opponent at Colorado State on Saturday, Oct. 17, at 1 p.m. (MT). USU continues the road trip the following week at Boise State (Oct. 22) and Oregon State (Oct. 24).

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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