Weber State University Athletics
Weber State University
Southern Utah
Wildcat volleyball falls to SUU in Big Sky opener
9/20/2013 4:16:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
CEDAR CITY, Utah – The road continues to be unkind to the Wildcats.
Taking on in-state rival Southern Utah to open up Big Sky Conference action, the Weber State University women's volleyball team fell 25-20, 22-25, 25-16, 26-24 to the Thunderbirds on Thursday night at Centrum Arena.
The Wildcats fall to 0-1 in Big Sky play, 4-11 overall, despite a balanced offensive effort that saw three players reach double-figures kills.
Freshman middle blocker Katie Harvey had 10 kills and hit .421, with five blocks and two service aces to lead the Wildcats, while sophomore outside hitter Rebecca Fuchs added 11 kills and sophomore outside hitter Mariah Kahawaii had 10 kills and a pair of blocks.
Junior libero McKay Tarbox recorded 22 digs, while sophomore setter/outside hitter Samantha Staker had 27 assists.
Weber State outgained Southern Utah (1-0 Big Sky, 2-8 overall) in both kills (50-46) and total attacks (139-118), but the Thunderbirds capitalized on nine service aces and outblocked the Wildcats 14-9 on the night.
Southern Utah open the first set with a 5-0 surge, but Weber State rallied to take an 11-10 lead and two two teams battled until a late push earned he Thunderbirds the five-point win.
The Wildcats leveled the match at 1-1 with a strong second set.
Weber State held an early lead in the third set and was tied at 10-10 before a 7-1 surge pushed Southern Utah out front and allowed them to take a 2-1 lead in the match.
SUU came out flying to start the fourth set, taking a 7-2 lead before WSU rallied to take a 9-8 advantage. The Wildcats continued to lead much of the set, holding a 21-19 advantage before a 4-0 run by the Thunderbirds put the home team in from 23-21. SUU led 24-22 before back-to-back kills by Kahawaii and junior outside hitter Audrey Biggs leveled it at 24-24.
Southern Utah closed out the match with a kill and a Weber State attack error to take the four-set victory.
Weber State remains on the road and will travel to take on Northern Arizona on Saturday night. First serve is set for 8 p.m. The Lumberjacks are 7-3 overall (1-0) in Big Sky play after taking a five-set victory over Idaho State on Thursday night.
