CEDAR CITY, Utah - The Southern Utah University women's volleyball team emerged victorious over their southern rivals Utah Tech on Saturday, Oct. 5, winning in four sets. The Thunderbirds improve to 7-8 on the season and 3-1 in WAC conference play while the Trailblazers fall to 9-5 and 3-1 in conference.
Head Coach Kacey Nady Said:
"Today was a fun one; we competed hard and had a strong will to win. There were a lot of things that we saw transferred from practice and the team is very hungry to continue to grow. Thank you to the alumni and families that came to our annual celebratory weekend!"
Top T-Birds
- Teniyah Leuluai racked up a career-high 51 assists, surpassing 1,000 in her Thunderbird career.
- Finley Charapata charged the offense with a season-high 16 kills.
- Leuluai (12) and Arianna Rossi (11) each recorded double-digit digs.
Match Recap
Southern Utah came out of the gate firing, scoring the first five points of the match to power their way to a 13-7 lead halfway through the set. After a 5-0 scoring run from the Trailblazers gave them a one-point deficit, 13-12, the Thunderbirds continued to hold serve to claim a 20-16 advantage late. After a point-for-point battle that saw the score 22-18 in favor of the home team, SUU fired off three of the last five points to take set one 25-20.
The Trailblazers started the second strong, holding an early 4-3 lead before a 5-0 and 6-0 scoring run saw the Thunderbirds take a dominant 14-6 advantage at the halfway mark. Despite three straight from Utah Tech coming out of the break, Southern Utah continued to attack, responding to each kill with a point of their own before another scoring run of three put them on the brink, 24-17 before a kill from Andrea Spasojevic put it on ice 25-17 to give the Thunderbirds a 2-0 lead.
In the third, UTU flipped the script, taking an early lead with a 4-0 scoring run and riding that momentum throughout the frame, holding an early 13-6 lead. Despite the deficit, Southern Utah stayed steady, chipping into the lead to show the score 20-16 in favor of Utah Tech. However, the rally proved not enough as the Trailblazers would claim the third 25-18 and send the match into a fourth set.
Set number four was a back-and-forth affair for both clubs, with the game tied at 15 in the middle of the frame. Going into the second half, both teams continued to attack, going point-for-point before two straight from the Thunderbirds gave them a slight 21-19 edge before two quick kills from the Trailblazers tied it up once again. With Utah Tech up 24-23 knocking on the door of a fifth set, the offense came alive, securing two straight points before a kill from Finley Charapata blocked all chances of a comeback, giving her team the 26-24 set win and a 3-1 match victory.
Up Next
The Thunderbirds will stay in the AFEC as the team prepares to take on the California Baptist Lancers on Thursday, Oct. 10. First serve is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. MT.
Tickets
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