The San Diego State women’s volleyball team faltered to the Utah State Aggies in four sets at Wayne Estes Center on Saturday, Oct. 21.
The Aztecs (8-13, 3-7 Mountain West Conference) won the first set 26-24, before dropping three straight sets with scores of 19-25, 24-26 and 27-29.
Opposite hitter Taylor Underwood started off the first set with a pair of service aces to give the Aztecs an early 6-3 lead.
Later in the set, the Aztecs snatched their 17th point in a rally that was highlighted by defensive specialist McKenna Douglas keeping the ball alive while on her knees. Outside hitter Mikela Labno finished the rally with one of her eleven kills in the contest.
Late in the set, down 23-24, middle blocker Amber Keen came up with a kill that stayed just inside the backline. A few plays later, the Aggies’ had a kill attempt that went out of bounds and gave the Aztecs the first set.
In the second set, the Aztecs led 13-12 and then surrendered a four-point run to the Aggies that forced head coach Brent Hilliard to call timeout.
However, the Aztecs were unable to reverse course. Two Aztecs collided on a dig attempt that made the score 22-18. Later, the Aggies finished the set with a kill to even up the sets at one apiece.
Deep into the set, with the score even at 24-apiece, Darnell dove to the floor to keep a rally going, however, a four-touch return error by the Aztecs put the Aggies at set point.
The Aggies sealed the third set with a kill to put the Aztecs in a 2-1 deficit.
In the fourth set, the Aztecs found themselves in a 14-8 hole. The Scarlet and Black responded with five straight points, capped off by a kill by Underwood. Underwood finished with a team-high 18 kills.
However, the woes continued for the Aztecs. The Aggies stole two points off a dump set and were handed another point thanks to an Aztecs service error.
With the score knotted up at 20, an SDSU attack error went out of bounds. Hilliard challenged the call, but after review, the call stood.
With the Aztecs on the brink, the Aggies’ final kill of the afternoon knocked out the Aztecs in four sets.
The Aztecs offense spent most of the night chasing the ball, which resulted in free plays for the Aggies.
Setter Fatima Hall racked up a team high 27 assists. Defensive specialist McKenna Douglas produced 19 digs on the night. It was Douglas’ eleventh-straight game with double-digit digs.
The Aztecs are set to face off against New Mexico on Thursday, Oct. 26 at Johnson Center in Albuquerque.
