OREM – Utah Valley knocked off in-state rival Utah State, 3-1 (25-19, 20-25, 25-23, 25-20) in front of a rocking crowd in Lockhart Arena, marking the third-straight win the series for UVU. With the Wolverines' third-straight win, UVU improves to 4-5 on the season as the Aggies fall to 6-4 on the year.
 
"I was really pleased with our players sticking to the system," said Utah Valley head volleyball coach Sam Atoa. "We've been talking about that and helping them to trust in what they had prepared for and their abilities to execute. It was a fun night. Any time you get the in-state schools together, it brings out the best in you. I'm a firm believer that it's not going to take just seven kids for us to win a conference championship or go beyond that. Having these young players contribute to the experienced core that we have will benefit us going forward."
 
Makayla Pollard and Kristen Bell got the Wolverines rolling early as UVU took an early 5-0 lead. The Aggies stormed back, scoring the next four points to trim the lead to 5-4. After both teams went back and forth, Bell and Sadie Hamson led another 5-0 run by Utah Valley to extend its lead to 14-8. Utah State used a 5-2 run to cut the lead to 16-13 but UVU countered with a 4-1 run to push the lead to 20-14. USU made a final push, scoring a 4-1 run, but the Wolverines were able to finish off the set, 25-19, to take the first set.
 
Utah State raced out to an early 5-2 advantage, but Jules Fink led a 9-2 UVU rally to retake the lead, 11-7. The Aggies surged back ahead, using a 15-4 run to take a 22-15 lead. Kazna Tanuvasa and the Wolverines ripped off four-straight points to cut the deficit to 22-19, but USU scored the final three points of the set to take the set, 25-20, tying the match up at 1-1.
 
Both teams exchanged points to start the third set with a score of 6-6. With Utah State up 9-7, Tanuvasa and Fink led the UVU on a 3-1 run to tie the score back up at 10-10. The Aggies rattled off three-straight points, but Utah Valley countered with a 4-1 run to bring the score to 14-14. After four-straight USU points, Tanuvasa and Fink spearheaded a 9-2 surge to put the Wolverines up, 23-20. Utah State tried to come back, using a 3-1 run to cut the lead to one point, but Bell hammered home a kill to finish the set off, 25-23, giving the Wolverines a 2-1 advantage in the match.
 
Bryton Bishop and Bell led UVU to an early 6-1 lead in the fourth set. After back-to-back points by the Aggies, Tanuvasa scored three of the next points by herself to push the Wolverine lead to 9-4. Utah State countered with a 6-1 surge to tie the set up at 10-10. Utah Valley used a 5-2 run to extend its lead to 15-12, but the Aggies rallied with a 3-1 run to cut the lead to 16-15. Tanuvasa led the Wolverines on a 5-0 run to push the lead to 21-15. After back-to-back points by USU, a pair of kills by Kalea Kennedy put the Wolverines at match point, 24-18, before Bell got the final kill to end it, 25-18.
 
Tanuvasa and Bell led UVU with identical nights of 15 kills, eight digs, and four blocks each. Fink finished with 12 kills and Pollard led the Wolverines with six blocks. Abbie Miller led Utah Valley with 27 assists to go along with four digs and Natalie Palmer chipped in 15 assists and 11 digs. Bishop led the backline with 20 digs to go along with five assists.
 
The Wolverines continue at home as UVU hosts Idaho State on Sep. 16 in Lockhart Arena at 5:00 p.m. MT. Utah Valley then welcomes in-state rival #15 BYU to Lockhart Arena on Saturday, Sep. 18 for the UCCU Crosstown Clash. The match is set to begin at 6:00 p.m. MT.