Sept. 20, 2011
OGDEN, Utah - It took a career-high 17 kills from Jaicee Kuresa and 13 kills apiece from Chelsey Heaps and Erica Nish for Utah Valley to hold on and defeat in-state rival Weber State in five sets at Swenson Gym in Ogden Tuesday night 3-2 (25-21, 22-25, 25-16, 26-28, 15-8). The win upped the Wolverines to 10-5 while the loss dropped the Wildcats to 0-13.
"You always know that it's going to be a brawl when you take on an in-state school and our girls played really well tonight," Wolverine head coach Sam Atoa said. "It was a tough battle that went back-and-forth but our girls wanted it, especially at the end. In the final set we did a great job of siding out at 87-percent and controlling the net and that is what won it for us."
Kuresa, Heaps and Nish -- who are all from Northern Utah -- not only finished in double figures in kills they also all hit .300 or better. Nish led the way hitting .391, while Kuresa and Heaps hit .364 and .310 respectively. Nish and Kuresa also each added five block assists and Heaps chipped in eight digs.
Overall, Sarah Clement topped the Wolverines in blocks with five block assists and a solo block. Clement also added eight kills and hit an even .400. Brookelyn Campbell also had another solid match with a double-double of a season-high 52 assists and 11 digs.
"We needed every bit of these performances," Atoa added. "I'm real happy for Chelsey for having a great match here in her home area. Erica and Sarah also continue to excel for us in the middle and Jaicee had another great match where she executed well."
In a close first set that saw four lead changes and seven ties the Wolverines opened a three-point lead at 19-16 after a Clement kill. The Wildcats later got within one at 20-19 but UVU responded by scoring five of the final seven points to win the set 25-21. Heaps and Nish helped the Wolverines take the set with four kills apiece.
In the early stages of the second set UVU opened up a quick four-point advantage at 7-3 but Weber State responded by scoring five unanswered points to go up 8-7. The momentum stayed with WSU as they later rolled off nine straight points to take a 19-10 lead. Down 23-13 the Wolverines made their move by scoring six consecutive points and eventually pulled within two at 24-22 but the deficit was too great to overcome as Weber State took the set 25-22. As a team the Wildcats tallied six service aces in the set.
UVU bounced back in the third set by taking an early 9-3 advantage after a Lindsay Barker service ace. Weber State came back and got within two after at 11-9 after a 5-0 run but the Wolverines later responded with their own 8-0 spurt of their own to go ahead 21-13. During UVU's run McKenna Tait had two aces and Kuresa added two kills and a block. The Wolverines cruised from there in the set winning it by nine.
The Wolverines controlled the fourth set early on and took a 13-7 advantage after a Clement block. The Wildcats later got within a point a 15-14 but the Wolverines answered and managed to hold their lead as they went ahead by four at 19-15. WSU then came back late and took its first lead since the second set at 22-21. The Wildcats then scored again to go up by two but UVU responded with two points of its own to tie it at 23.
Later in the fourth set Weber State broke a 24-all tie on a UVU attack error to take a set-point advantage at 25-24. Play continued as both sides continued to battle it out until the Wildcats broke a 26-26 tie by rolling off two straight points to win the set and force a fifth set.
WSU took the upper hand early on in the fifth set by holding the lead until UVU eventually tied it at four. From there the score went back-and-forth until a Heaps ace gave UVU a little breathing room with a 9-6 advantage. After a Wildcat point the Wolverines scored four straight points to take a late 13-7 lead. Bethany Wray then scored a kill for Weber State but a Kuresa kill and a Nish and Kalani Norris block gave UVU the set and the match.
For the match, the Wolverines outhit the Wildcats .259 to .130. UVU also had 11 total team blocks and posted 10 more kills, 10 more digs and 16 more assists than Weber State.
The Wolverines will continue their nine-match road trip Saturday when they travel to Pocatello, Idaho to face Idaho State. The following Saturday, Oct. 1, UVU will then begin Great West Conference play when it heads to Grand Forks, N.D., to face defending GWC champion North Dakota.
