Idaho collected another victory against the Weber State Wildcats with a score of 3-1.
Idaho (11-7, BSC 6-1 BSC) kept a 2-0 lead over Weber State (4-15, BSC 2-5) in the opening two sets.
The Vandals controlled the game trailing only once after the opening play. Idaho started the night hitting .417 with 17 kills. Junior outside hitter Sarah Sharp took down the final three points breaking a tie at 22, leading the team with 10 kills at intermission.
Sharp and junior outside hitter Kaela Straw headed Idaho’s attack during the game. Straw finished leading the team with 16 kills. Sharp ended the game close behind Straw with 14 kills and a .393 hitting percentage.
Junior outside hitter/middle blocker Reece Carman ended out with nine kills.
Idaho head coach Debbie Buchanan said in a news release that she liked the way her team adjusted to a strong Weber State team.
“Our pins did a great job,” Buchanan said. “Actually, I felt like the difference in game four was that we were able to get our middles involved. That was kind of our goal. We wanted to get them more involved in our transition game. Weber State was really committed to our pins and I think that was a really good adjustment on our part.”
Idaho won the first set 21-25 and the second set 22-25.
The third set of the game did not go as smoothly for the Vandals. Weber state controlled match after an early 3-0 run to claim a 6-3 lead. The Vandals fought back and won a long battle, turning the game around starting a 3-0 run. Idaho was within two points of the lead when the Wildcats came out with a 4-0 run to take the win on the set.
Idaho fired back with more power than the crowed expected. Junior middle blocker DeVonneRyter caped add a 5-0 run, giving the Vandals the upper hand early. Idaho took down six team blocks in the final set, pushing the Idaho run out to 21-10. Ryter had one more kill, giving Idaho the game-point. The final score of the game was 25-14.
Buchanan said she was proud of the Vandal’s performance in the final set.
“I thought our team did a really good job in the fourth set,” Buchanan said. “We really tried to dominate. We got more blocks during that game and really took control of that set. Game three we just came out a little slow and made a few errors. You cannot do that against them. Weber State is a really good team. Their record does not really show where they are at.”
Sharp said the team played with a vengeance in the third set.
“I think we were a little ticked off,” Sharp said. “We really wanted to come out and end it in three. We had a little bit of a third-game lull. We came back in the fourth game and just really tried to take control and be in charge of the match”.
Idaho faces off against Eastern Washington for Idaho’s annual Dig for a cure match 7 p.m. Saturday in the Memorial Gym.
Marisa Lloyd can be reached at [email protected]