Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
Utah State*
Fresno State Battles In Tight Conference Match
9/21/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Sept. 21, 2006
Logan, Utah - Led by 18 kills from Fr. OH Lacey Gera and 65 digs as a team, the Bulldogs lost its first conference match of the season in a close four games (17-30,30-28,40-42,22-30). The Bulldogs hit .203 in the third game which was the highest scoring game of the match. This is the first loss for the Bulldogs in WAC play.
Utah State came out red hot in game one and jumped out to a 12-6 lead on a kill by Fr. MB Danielle Taylor. The Aggies played well in the first game in that their biggest lead was 13 at 28-15. The Bulldogs were led by Lacey Gera on five kills and Sr. OH Alison Pitton with five digs in game one.
The Bulldogs led most of the second game and in that was a much different story from the first. In game two Fresno State was led by Gera with seven kills on a hitting percentage of .353 and Sr. OH Alison Pitton recording six digs. Game two was close but the Bulldogs pulled it out winning 30-28.
After the break the Aggies came out firing in a nail biting high-scoring third game. With injured Fr. OH Karlie Houston, Jr. OH Angela Wiggins and Pitton paved the way for the Bulldogs combining for a total of 14 kills. At (31-30) the Aggies ahead, Jr. S Tiffany Hess landed a left handed hook shot that gave the Bulldogs momentum. With the score at 40 a piece Jr. OH Beth Hodge laid down a kill that would give the Aggies a lead for the game. The Bulldogs ended the game with a hitting error. Fresno State couldn't quite hold on as they lost the game 42-40. Game three was tight in the statistical category in that both teams tied the game with 59 team attacks and 22 assists. The Bulldogs had one less kill than the Aggies at 23.
Utah State was able to sneak out a win in game four to capture the match 3-1. The Bulldogs were unable to pull a lead back as they had in the third game.
Fresno State will head to the islands to play No. 15 Hawai'i on Saturday night. The Rainbow Wahine won the conference last year and have a record of 6-4. That match begins at 7 p.m. Pacific.
