The Idaho volleyball team held momentum through the end of the weekend, defeating Tennessee Tech 3-0 Saturday at the Golden Eagle Invitational in Cookeville, Tennessee. It was Idaho”s fourth nonconference invitational of the season.
Sophomore outside hitter Becca Mau and sophomore middle blocker Torrin Crawford were named to the all-tournament team this weekend. It is Mau”s second all-tournament honor this season and Crawford”s first.
Mau earned a total of 41 kills this weekend, including a career-high 19 against Western Carolina. It is the most of any Vandal since Jessica Hastriter earned 23 against North Texas in 2013.
Though the weekend culminated with a victory, it wasn”t without its share of adversity. Like last weekend at Portland, the Vandals lost their first two matches of the weekend, falling to Western Carolina 3-1 Friday and Towson 3-2 later that day.
In the first Friday match, the Vandals outhit the Catamounts .206 to .166, but it wasn”t enough for Idaho to earn the win.
In Idaho”s next match against Towson, it came down to the final set, when the Vandals saw the same result despite having the third set all but wrapped up.
Idaho had a comfortable 16-9 lead in the fourth set after a kill by senior outside hitter Katelyn Peterson, which led to a Towson timeout.
Things changed for the Vandals when freshman and Golden Eagle Invitational MVP Jocelyn Kuilan contributed to the Tiger”s comeback as they scored the next six points to cut the Idaho lead to 16-15.
The Tigers continued their momentum and won the set 25-22. Kuilan finished the set with a kill to tie the match at two.
Both teams fought neck and neck without a clear leader in the final set.
Once they tied at 8, Idaho”s two straight errors gave the Tigers a 10-8 lead as Towson scored five out of the last seven points to win the set and the match.
With two losses in the invite, Idaho entered the final match of the weekend looking to win against the Golden Eagles.
After a kill by the Golden Eagles” Cody Dodd, which put Tennessee Tech up 17-13 in the second set, Idaho coach Debbie Buchanan called a timeout. Once both teams returned to the court, the momentum swung in favor of the Vandals.
Dodd went from having a kill the last play to committing a service error, reducing Idaho”s deficit to three points. The next three plays consisted of three straight attack errors by the Golden Eagles to bring the set to a 17-17 tie.
Idaho ended the set on a 12-0 run, winning 25-17. Crawford and redshirt freshman Sarah Sharp led Idaho with six blocks.
The Golden Eagles once again had the early advantage with a 6-3 lead in the third set. But attack errors hurt Tennessee Tech”s momentum and the Vandals were able to take the lead after scoring six out of the next seven points.
Mau ended the set with her team-leading 10th and final kill as Idaho captured its third win of the season.
With the final invitational in the books, Idaho now shifts its focus to the Big Sky Conference this week. It plays Northern Colorado at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Memorial Gym. The last matchup between these two teams was last season on Nov. 15 with the Bears winning 3-1.
Luis Torres can be reached at [email protected]