Weber State University Athletics
Saturday, September 2
Ogden
2 PM
Weber State University
3-3,0-0Big Sky
3
vs
2
UNLV
2-3,0-0Mountain West
1
2
3
4
5
F
UNLV
18
25
25
20
12
2
Weber St.
25
20
19
25
15
3
Photo by: Robert Casey
Hard-nosed Wildcats Tough Out Five-Set Thriller Over Rebels
9/2/2023 6:49:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
OGDEN – In a five-set thriller on a Saturday in Swenson Gym, the Weber State Wildcats reigned supreme over the 2022 Mountain West Conference champion UNLV Rebels.
The first set was utter domination from the Wildcats who got out to an early lead and never looked back. Dani Richins scored on seven of her 15 swings to pace the 'Cats and help Weber State notch a 25-18 win in the opening set.
UNLV immediately clapped back in the second frame. The Rebel offense was on fire in the second frame and UNLV cruised to a 25-20 set to tie the match up at one set each.
The third set Rebel attack continued to be strong and the Wildcat defense didn't pick up stops when it needed to. UNLV took the third set by a tally of 25-19.
In what was a do-or-die fourth set for Weber State, the Wildcats picked up a trio of kills from Richins and from outside hitter Mia Peterson to kickstart the offense. Richins also scored her second ace of the match in the early phases of the fourth set, giving her 173 service aces for her career. That mark ties the all-time Wildcat record which was set 34 years ago by Kathy Nickel. The Wildcats also controlled the match from the service line and picked up two of their 11 aces for the match in the fourth set, and WSU forced a match-deciding fifth set.
A staunch defense from Weber State held UNLV to a .000 hitting percentage in the final set, and that was one of the biggest factors in what ended up as the biggest Wildcat victory in the young 2023 season. Much to the liking of the large, loud purple-clad crowd, the 'Cats outhit UNLV and kept offensive mistakes to a minimum. The
Wildcats surged past UNLV to clinch the match with a 15-12 fifth set victory.
NOTABLES
-Richins next ace will put her alone atop the Wildcat leaderboard for most aces in a career.
-Woodley played what was the best game of her career. She doubled her previous career high in kills with 10 (previous was five against Utah Valley in 2021), and hit a team-high of .368.
-Peterson set a new career high for kills in a match with 11. That bests her previous high of 10 which she set last season against North Carolina A&T
-Weber State outperformed UNLV from the service line with 11 aces compared to just four for the Rebels
-Saturday's double-double club includes Richins (16 kills, 12 digs), and Kate Standifird(44 assists, 17 digs).
QUOTABLES
"That's a really, really good volleyball team. To get a win of that caliber is a huge accomplishment for this early season. […] (Richins) has put a lot of hard work into her game. For her to be able to become the soon-to-be all-time ace leader here is a testament to all of her hard work." – Jeremiah Larsen
"I think knowing the tendencies of the middles against us and adjusting everything around that. Also know that Dani and Ashley (Gneiting) and Baylee (Bodily) were playing well opened things up for me and I was one on one all night, so props to them." – Liana Woodley
UP NEXT
The Wildcats head to Corpus Christi, Texas for a three-match tournament. The first match will be on September 7 against Prairie View A&M at 11 AM mountain time. Details about how to follow the match will be disseminated on social media as they become available.
TICKETS
Season and single match tickets are on sale and can be purchased online or by calling the Weber State ticket office at 801-626-8500.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Make sure to follow Weber State volleyball on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter to stay up to date with everything happening with the Wildcats.
The first set was utter domination from the Wildcats who got out to an early lead and never looked back. Dani Richins scored on seven of her 15 swings to pace the 'Cats and help Weber State notch a 25-18 win in the opening set.
UNLV immediately clapped back in the second frame. The Rebel offense was on fire in the second frame and UNLV cruised to a 25-20 set to tie the match up at one set each.
The third set Rebel attack continued to be strong and the Wildcat defense didn't pick up stops when it needed to. UNLV took the third set by a tally of 25-19.
In what was a do-or-die fourth set for Weber State, the Wildcats picked up a trio of kills from Richins and from outside hitter Mia Peterson to kickstart the offense. Richins also scored her second ace of the match in the early phases of the fourth set, giving her 173 service aces for her career. That mark ties the all-time Wildcat record which was set 34 years ago by Kathy Nickel. The Wildcats also controlled the match from the service line and picked up two of their 11 aces for the match in the fourth set, and WSU forced a match-deciding fifth set.
A staunch defense from Weber State held UNLV to a .000 hitting percentage in the final set, and that was one of the biggest factors in what ended up as the biggest Wildcat victory in the young 2023 season. Much to the liking of the large, loud purple-clad crowd, the 'Cats outhit UNLV and kept offensive mistakes to a minimum. The
Wildcats surged past UNLV to clinch the match with a 15-12 fifth set victory.
NOTABLES
-Richins next ace will put her alone atop the Wildcat leaderboard for most aces in a career.
-Woodley played what was the best game of her career. She doubled her previous career high in kills with 10 (previous was five against Utah Valley in 2021), and hit a team-high of .368.
-Peterson set a new career high for kills in a match with 11. That bests her previous high of 10 which she set last season against North Carolina A&T
-Weber State outperformed UNLV from the service line with 11 aces compared to just four for the Rebels
-Saturday's double-double club includes Richins (16 kills, 12 digs), and Kate Standifird(44 assists, 17 digs).
QUOTABLES
"That's a really, really good volleyball team. To get a win of that caliber is a huge accomplishment for this early season. […] (Richins) has put a lot of hard work into her game. For her to be able to become the soon-to-be all-time ace leader here is a testament to all of her hard work." – Jeremiah Larsen
"I think knowing the tendencies of the middles against us and adjusting everything around that. Also know that Dani and Ashley (Gneiting) and Baylee (Bodily) were playing well opened things up for me and I was one on one all night, so props to them." – Liana Woodley
UP NEXT
The Wildcats head to Corpus Christi, Texas for a three-match tournament. The first match will be on September 7 against Prairie View A&M at 11 AM mountain time. Details about how to follow the match will be disseminated on social media as they become available.
TICKETS
Season and single match tickets are on sale and can be purchased online or by calling the Weber State ticket office at 801-626-8500.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Make sure to follow Weber State volleyball on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter to stay up to date with everything happening with the Wildcats.
Team Stats
UNLV
Weber
Kills
59
52
Errors
24
27
Attempts
155
164
Hitting %
.226
.152
Points
75.0
73.0
Assists
58
51
Aces
4
11
Blocks
12
10
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
16
Aces
2
Blocks
0
Kills
11
Aces
1
Blocks
1
Kills
10
Aces
1
Blocks
4
Kills
7
Aces
2
Blocks
1
Players Mentioned
S
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's Volleyball
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