Oct. 6, 2011
OREM, Utah -- Fourteen different Wolverines saw the floor as Utah Valley cruised to a straight set victory over Great West Conference opponent Chicago State (25-19, 25-17, 25-15) Thursday night in the Activity Center. A balanced attack, 11 Wolverines (12-6, 2-0 GWC) registered kills and combined to outhit the Cougars (1-18, 0-3 GWC) .304 to .090.
"It was fun to be able to be in a situation that allowed us to get as many kids in as we could," said UVU head volleyball coach Sam Atoa. "These kids can play, some of them just need to get a little bit more experience. And game-time, competition experience is important because you can't get that anywhere else. They practice well, and they practice hard but it's the competition that allows them to really get better."
After a relatively slow start, Utah Valley took control on the scoreboard midway through the first set. Behind two kills from freshman Kalani Norris, who would finish with a season-high eight kills, and another two from senior Jaicee Kuresa, UVU jumped out to a 20-11 lead. Chicago State scored six of the next nine points, but a Chelsey Heaps kill sealed the set for the Wolverines, 25-19. Norris posted a set-high five kills in the frame while Kuresa and Heaps added four and three kills respectively. Sophomore Brookelyn Campbell also chipped in 11 assists in the opening set.
In the second set, UVU jumped out to a quick 6-2 lead behind kills from Kuresa, Katie Fritzler, and Heaps. Chicago State countered with its own 6-2 run to cut the UVU lead to as little as two at 10-8, but it was all UVU the rest of the way. A 10-4 run, capped by a Heaps kill, saw the lead balloon to 20-12, and the Wolverines would coast to a comfortable 25-17 second set win. Heaps led the way for UVU with four kills while Rachel Anderson added 11 assists. Kuresa and Fritzler also added three kills apiece. UVU outhit CSU .379 to .111 in the frame.
A back-and-forth start to the third set quickly gave way to a UVU offensive charge as they pieced together a 9-3 run to take a 17-7 advantage. Nish blasted three kills during the rally while Norris dropped in back-to-back service aces. The comfortable lead forged during that run proved enough to secure the match for the Wolverines, as they ultimately took the set, 25-15. Nish paced UVU with a set-high five kills and two blocks and Anderson added another 11 assists. The Wolverines recorded six block assists in the closing frame.
On her Hometown Hero night, Anderson came up big for the Wolverines, posting a career-high in assists with 22. Heaps notched her sixth double-double of the season with 11 kills and 10 digs.
UVU returns to the court Saturday to continue Great West Conference play when it hosts NJIT at 1 p.m. in the Activity Center. The Wolverines will then close out their three-match homestand by hosting Boise State Monday at 7 p.m.
