ST. GEORGE, Utah - The Southern Utah University volleyball team (6-13, 5-5 WAC) played clutch down the stretch today, defeating in-state rival Utah Tech (10-9, 4-6 WAC) in five sets.

The Thunderbirds jumped out to an 8-3 lead to begin set one, behind four early kills from Makenzie Templeton. Southern Utah never slowed down. A block from Raegen Beeson and Macy Short capped off a 4-0 run that pushed the Thunderbirds ahead 18-9. The lead proved to be insurmountable, and Carissa Richie recorded the final kill to give the Thunderbirds the set 25-16.

Both squads came to play to begin the second set, and they soon found themselves tied at 4-4. After this, Utah Tech exploded with a 7-1 run to take a six point lead (11-5). The Thunderbirds fired off four straight points to make it a close set, but the Trailblazers responded by scoring seven of the next eight points, taking a commanding 17-10 advantage. Southern Utah attempted a late rally, getting within three points (18-15), but in the end Utah Tech would go on to take set two 25-19.

Southern Utah took turns exchanging points with Utah Tech early in set three, as the two teams saw the score tied 6-6. The Thunderbirds broke the cycle and went on a 7-1 run that was punctuated by a service ace from Molly McDermott, taking a 13-7 lead. The T-Birds maintained this advantage, going up 20-13 after a kill by Rylee Achtzehn. Utah Tech battled back to trim the lead to four (22-18), but it was too little, too late for the Trailblazers. The Thunderbirds seized the set 25-18.

Utah Tech came out strong to begin the fourth set, building a 9-5 lead right out the gate. The Thunderbirds fought back, cutting the lead to two (12-10), but that was as close as they would get. The Trailblazers would push ahead in the end, taking the set 25-14.

The fifth and final set was an absolute battle. The Thunderbirds began with a 3-0 run, only for the Trailblazers to fire back with four consecutive points of their own. Soon the two teams were tied at 5 points apiece. The next stretch of the game was critical, and Makenzie Templeton stepped up in the clutch. Templeton was brilliant, recording a block followed by two straight kills. SUU used this momentum to leap ahead, finding themselves up 12-9 late in the set. The Trailblazers fought back to tie the set at 12-12. The match was there for the taking, and the Thunderbirds took it, scoring three straight points to win the set 15-12 and the match 3-1.

Makenzie Templeton was a force to be reckoned with, compiling 15 kills to go along with 10 digs. Molly McDermott was huge tonight as well, recording 11 kills and a team-high 23 digs. Raegen Beeson also had double digit kills, tallying 11, while Rylee Achtzehn wasn't far behind, totaling 9 kills of her own. Another key factor in the win was setter Macy Short, who posted an impressive 47 assists along with 16 digs and seven kills.

With the win, the Thunderbirds improve to 5-5 in conference play and 6-13 overall.

Up Next

Southern Utah will return to Cedar City on Thursday for a match against Grand Canyon. The match is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. MT.

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