Aztecs Fall in Four Sets to Boise State at Home

SAN DIEGO – For the second straight match, the San Diego State volleyball team captured the opening set, only to see its lead dissipate after falling to Boise State by a 3-1 count (26-24, 20-25, 19-25, 20-25) in a Mountain West clash on Saturday inside Aztec Court at Peterson Gym.

The short-handed Aztecs were unable to keep pace with the net prowess of the Broncos, who maintained a sizable advantage in team blocks (21.0 to 8.0) while owning the upper hand in kills (57-52) and hitting percentage (.237 to .143) to even the season series at one match apiece. After recording a .278 efficiency in the opening set, SDSU hit just .099 over the final three frames.

With the loss, the Aztecs (12-11, 7-5 MW) slip into a tie for fourth place in the conference race with Boise State (15-8, 7-5 MW) and Grand Canyon (15-8, 7-5 MW), one match behind Wyoming (12-11, 8-4 MW), which posted a four-set victory over Fresno State on Saturday, while Utah State (15-7, 12-0 MW) and Colorado State (16-6, 10-2 MW) remain perched atop the league standings, respectively.

Once again, SDSU was led by Taylor Underwood, who tied for match-high honors with 14 kills, while Madison Corf also reached double figures with 10 put-aways of her own. In addition, the Aztecs received eight terminations by Ella Schabort, while Campbell Hague topped the squad with five block assists.

Not to be outdone, Kendall Mairs logged her ninth double-double of the season, finishing with a match-high 26 assists to go with 15 digs, while Sarena Gonzalez (13 assists, 4 digs) also contributed to SDSU’s setting efforts.

Elsewhere, Zara Stewart led all players with 16 digs, while Schabort totaled double digits in that category as well with 10 scoops.

The Broncos raced to a 10-4 lead in the opening set thanks in part to three consecutive blocks, capped by Dreves’ solo stop. However, the Aztecs displayed their trademark resiliency with a fierce 13-4  blitz to surge into the lead at 17-14. Hague combined on three blocks in that stretch and knocked down a kill, while Talea Mitchell assisted on two other rejections before Corf launched a pair of non-returnables.

Boise State countered with an 8-4 spurt, reclaiming a 22-21 advantage on a joint block by Sydney Dreves and Layla Smith. Shortly thereafter, SDSU flipped the script with three straight tallies, reaching set point at 24-22 on two Corf kills sandwiched around a combined block by Hague and Natalie Hughes.

Moments later, Smith floored a shot and joined forces with Kailyn Jager on a block, but consecutive kills by Corf and Underwood kept the visitors at bay, 26-24.

The Aztecs logged their best hitting percentage of the day with a .278 clip in the frame, collecting 15 kills against five errors in 36 attempts. Corf shouldered much of the burden with six put-aways and three block assists in that span, while Underwood contributed four kills of her own.

Buoyed by their good fortune, the Scarlet and Black raced to an 11-6 lead in the second stanza, punctuated by another Underwood termination. However, the Broncos ultimately seized the momentum with a 15-4 outburst, grabbing a 22-15 advantage they would not relinquish.

Layla Smith sparked the run with two blocks, including a solo effort, Eliza Sharp joined forces with Jazi Smith and Arianna Bilbey on two other rejections. Moments later, Sharp floored a pair of shots after Elle Cotton served up an ace. The Aztecs crept to within four on a Schabort kill, which narrowed the gap to 24-20. However, a subsequent service error extinguished any SDSU comeback hopes.

The Aztecs featured a balanced attack in the set, with Underwood supplying five kills, while Corf and Natalie Hughes added three each. However, SDSU was stymied by Boise State’s eight blocks in that span.

The Scarlet and Black found itself in pursuit mode for the entire third frame after falling behind by a 10-5 count. The host school narrowed the gap to 12-11 on a joint block by Schabort and Mitchell but could not seize the upper hand. The Broncos soon followed with a 6-1 run to take control. Sharp launched a pair of kills in that span and also teamed with Jazi Smith on a block.

SDSU trimmed the margin to 19-15 following a Boise State attack error but could not draw closer, as a joint block by Dreves and Layla Smith gave the visitors an insurmountable 22-15 lead shortly thereafter.

The two teams battled through 11 ties and three lead changes early in the fourth set before the Broncos vaulted in front to stay on two straight combined blocks by Bilby and Sharp. The Aztecs faced a trio of three-point deficits moments later before pulling to within one at 20-19 on a Hague service ace.

However, Boise State vanquished SDSU’s remaining hopes to extend the match with a 5-1 closing run, highlighted by three Bilby kills, the last of which secured the match.

Bilby tied Underwood’s production with 14 kills, while Sharp, Dreves, Layla Smith and Jazi Smith finished with nine put-aways each. In addition, Sharp led all players with 11 block assists, while Layla Smith total nine rejections, including a pair of solo stops in the win.

San Diego State embarks on its final road trip of the regular season next week when it battles Grand Canyon on Thursday, Nov. 6, before engaging New Mexico two days later on Saturday, Nov. 8.