Oct. 3, 2013
SAN DIEGO - The San Diego State volleyball team received double-digit kill totals from three players and came up with some timely blocks late to secure a four-set victory over Fresno State (25-19, 25-18, 19-25, 25-21) Thursday at Aztec Court.
The match was seemingly headed for a fifth set; however, SDSU erased a 13-6 deficit in the fourth frame with a strong 19-8 closing run to clinch the victory and raise its record to 7-6 overall and 2-1 in Mountain West play.
Summer Nash led a balanced Aztec offense with a team-high 14 kills, followed by Emily Harris (12) and Michelle Waber (10). Harris committed just one error on 22 attempts for the evening, finishing with a .500 hitting percentage, to go along with eight block assists. In addition, the SDSU cause was aided by Johnna Fouch, who dished out 28 assists, while Courtney Vaccarello scooped up 10 digs.
Conversely, the Bulldogs (7-8, 1-2 MW) were paced by the two-pronged attack of Korrin Wild (17) and Marissa Brand (16), who tallied 33 of the team's 51 kills, while Christina Lee added a double-double with 35 assists and 10 digs.
As a team, SDSU outhit Fresno State by a margin of .261-.181 and owned a sizeable 11-6 advantage in total blocks.
After hitting at a .400 clip on 31 kills over the first two frames, the Aztecs notched just nine put-aways during the third stanza, as the Bulldogs cut into SDSU's 2-0 advantage in sets. Despite the deficiency, the Aztecs were just two points down at 20-18 following a kill by Halle Aiken. However, two attack errors down the stretch derailed SDSU's hopes for a sweep.
Stung, the Aztecs found themselves on the wrong side of a 13-6 score midway through the fourth set, before methodically chipping away at Fresno State's advantage. A Justine Ricigliano service ace and Baylee Little kill finally gave the host school its first lead of the frame at 21-20. The Bulldogs answered with a block, but SDSU countered with a rejection of its own by Nash and Kaja Sandberg to vault in front to stay. Shortly thereafter, Nash and Harris came up huge once again, stuffing a Holly Franks attempt at the net to complete the comeback.
SDSU will play host to San Jose State in another MW clash on Saturday, beginning at 7 p.m. PT at Aztec Court.