SALT LAKE CITY - Utah Valley University swept Abilene Christian University, 3-0 28-26, 25-21, 25-14 on Thursday at Behnken Field House. The Wolverines (5-8, 1-0) tallied 19 total blocks, the most in program history for a three-set match, led by Bella Wooden's 11. The win marked the first WAC opening win since 2022 for UVU. ACU (6-10) was limited to a .065 hitting percentage by UVU's stifling defense.
 
Utah Valley and Abilene Christian engaged in a closely contested first set, with Utah Valley ultimately prevailing 28-26. The balanced play by the Wolverines added them in the set with Avery Page, Sami Blackett and Olivia Gloeckner all recording three kills, but the UVU defense at the net had six total blocks to push them over the top with Gloeckner matching her kill total with three. Wooden, who finished with five points in the first set, dropped in a service ace to give UVU a 20-19 lead. UVU took a 23-21 lead following a kill from Alyssa Erickson and a block assist from Page and Erickson. The Wildcats responded to tie the set before the Wolverines edged out the win with a final block by Jaffa and Gloeckner, sealing the set 28-26.
 
Utah Valley claimed the second set against ACU with a 25-21 victory, marked by a strong finish. The Wildcats initially led 6-2, aided by two kills from Beaver and a service error from the Wolverines. Utah Valley found momentum through key plays and chipped away at the deficit. They tied the set up at 13 after an ace from Evalyn Chism, who helped UVU take a 15-13 lead while she was serving. Following an Abilene Christian response, Erickson and Page went to work from the front row and helped the home team regain the lead and push it out to 22-18. Page ended the set with a serve to put UVU in the driver's seat up 2-0.
 
Utah Valley tallied a team-high eight blocks in the third set to help swing the match in their favor. After the Wildcats had jumped out to a 5-2 lead, the front row defense picked up with Wooden finishing the set with six block assists, Page added four, and two each from Erickson, Gloeckner, and Jaffa. The Wolverines went up 11-8 after a kill from Jaffa before she teamed up with Page and Gloeckner for block assists to put their team in front 15-11. The final five points of the match went to UVU, with Page recording three aces in the stretch to pass Kayli Doxey for third all-time in service aces.
 
UP NEXT
Utah Valley will play Tarleton State on Saturday, Sept. 27 at 6:00 p.m. MT from Smith Fieldhouse at Brigham Young University in Provo. The Wolverines will then hit the road for a matchup with Utah Tech on Saturday, Oct. 4.