RENO, Nev. – The San Diego State volleyball team returned to the win column on Saturday afternoon, recording a four-set (28-26, 12-25, 25-22, 25-20) win against Nevada at Virginia Street Gym. The Aztecs improve to 7-16 with an even 5-5 record in Mountain West play, while Nevada falls to 8-13 with a 1-9 league mark.
SDSU had four standout offensive performances in the first set, as Hannah Turnlund (six kills, no errors, 11 attempts), Ashlynn Dunbar (five kills, one error, 10 attempts), Erin Gillcrist (five kills, one error, 11 attempts) and Tamia Reeves (four kills, no errors, six attempts) set the table for the Aztecs early on. SDSU, which trailed Nevada in the first set at 20-13, used a 6-0 run to cut the Wolf Pak lead to just one. SDSU later gained a 24-23 lead after a Turnlund kill which was set up by Gabi Peoples. The Aztecs solidified the first-set win after Turnlund logged her sixth kill of the set and Gillcrist and Deja Harris teamed up for a set-ending block to win 28-26. The Aztecs outhit the Wolf Pack, .422 - .275 for the first set.
SDSU struggled to carry over its offensive momentum into the second set, with the Wolf Pack finding some offensive success of their own -- using a .536 second-set hitting percentage to even the match with a 25-12 win.
After the uncharacteristic set for the Aztecs in the second, the Aztecs rebounded in the third and fourth, limiting Nevada to a .169 hitting percentage over the course of the third and fourth sets. =
With the third set tied at 21-21, Turnlund pushed the Aztecs ahead with a go-ahead kill, bringing the score to 22-21. A Loren Teter service ace later gave the Aztecs set point at 24-21. SDSU closed the set at 25-22 after a Nevada service error.
SDSU clinched the match largely in part to Harris' late-match performance, logging seven kills on 11 attempts in the fourth set. SDSU jumped out to a 13-6 lead in the fourth and held off a mid-set rally by Nevada to eventually win, 25-20.
SDSU outhit Nevada, .308 - .269 while the Wolf Pack held a narrow advantage in blocks at 7-6. Harris and Gillcrist led the Aztecs with 15 kills each, while Ashlynn Dunbar recorded a double-digit kill performance with 10. Gabi Peoples recorded 5 assists, while Teter and Dunbar recorded 15 and 13 digs, respectively.
NOTES
- SDSU has won each of its last seven meetings with Nevada.
- Deja Harris's seven kills in the fourth set are the most by an Aztec in a single set this season.
UP NEXT
SDSU continues its in-conference road trip next week, facing Colorado State on Thursday before ending the week at Wyoming on Saturday.