Fresno State narrowly defeats Aztecs in gripping five-set match – Great

 
FRESNO, Calif. – Despite a match-high 21 kills from Taylor Underwood, the San Diego State volleyball team was unable to avoid its third straight defeat on Thursday, dropping a tough five-set decision to Fresno State (25-23, 12-25, 25-19, 26-28, 9-15) in a Mountain West clash at Save Mart Center.
 
The Aztecs (7-11, 3-4 MW) owned the statistical advantage in kills (60-52) and digs (63-55) but committed 10 more attack errors (29-19) to finish with a .200 hitting percentage, while the Bulldogs (9-9, 3-4 MW) posted a .236 efficiency and maintained the edge in team blocks (13.0 to 9.0) and service aces (9-2) to help snap a three-match losing streak.
 
Missing three key contributors Heipua Tautua’a, Madison Corf and Kat Cooper, SDSU received a clutch performance from Cara Braun, who came off the bench to blast a career-high 14 kills, hitting .346 for the match after committing just five errors in 26 attempts. Another reserve, Reagan Merk tied her collegiate best as well with seven put-aways, finishing behind Julia Haynie, who launched eight non-returnables on the night.
 
However, the Aztecs were unable to contain Fresno State’s three-pronged attack of Ella Rud (15), Jenna Legault (14) and Grace Doyle (10), who combined for 39 of the team’s 52 kills, while Mya Sellers led all players with five blocks, including four solo stops.
 
The hotly contested opening set witnessed a whopping 17 ties and 10 lead changes, featuring four kills from Braun along with three strikes by Underwood, who also contributed a pair of solo blocks.
 
Trailing 23-21, SDSU scored the last four points of the frame, highlighted by two Underwood kills and a Bailey Darnell service ace, while the Bulldogs gifted a point on the final serve with an attack error.
 
The Aztecs were unable to capitalize on their good fortune in the second stanza, mustering just seven kills against 11 miscues in 27 attempts for a minus-.111 hitting percentage, while the Bulldogs posted their best efficiency of the match with a .444 clip, flooring 10 shots on an economical 18 swings with just two errors.
 
Following a combined block by Underwood and Schraeder that trimmed the deficit to 10-8, SDSU scored just four points the rest of the way, as Fresno State received three kills from Addison Haluska and two more from Rud to fuel their closing run.
 
The Aztecs stumbled out of the gates early in the third set, falling behind by a 9-6 tally after a kill by Hannah Walters. However, the Scarlet and Black flashed its resiliency, unleashing a 14-3 flurry to seize control.  Underwood keyed the blitz with three kills and joint block with Haynie, who also smashed two put-aways and contributed a solo rejection in that span.
 
With SDSU enjoying a comfortable 20-12 cushion, Braun helped keep the host school at bay with a pair of kills down the stretch, while Schraeder teamed with Merk on a block for the clinching point that gave the Aztecs a 2-1 advantage in sets.
 
San Diego State seemed primed to close out the match after blasting 20 kills against only five errors on 40 attempts in the fourth frame, finishing with its best efficiency of the night with a .375 clip. Individually, Underwood took center stage by launching nine non-returnables in the set, committing just one miscue on 11 swings for a stellar .727 hitting percentage. In addition, Merk (.400) contributed five kills, while Haynie and Schraeder floored two shots each.
 
Still, the Aztecs found themselves trailing 20-14 after consecutive kills by Legault and Doyle followed by a Cowie solo block. Undaunted, SDSU crafted an improbable 11-4 run, capped by a Merk kill to reach match point at 25-24. Underwood powered down four strikes in that stretch, while Schraeder came up with her own solo stuff.
 
However, Doyle’s subsequent kill kept the contest alive, tying the score at 25-25, and the Aztecs were unable to regain the upper hand. Following an exchange of points on a mishandled SDSU set and another Merk kill, Fresno State squared the contest at two sets apiece when Rud and Legault put away consecutive shots.
 
The scene then shifted to the decisive fifth set where the Aztecs built a pair of early three-point leads, including a 5-2 advantage after Merk launched another kill. However, three quick strikes by Rud and a Haluska ace sparked a 5-0 run that put the Bulldogs in front for good at 7-5.
 
After Braun’s non-returnable cut the margin to one, Fresno State closed with an 8-3 run to secure the win. The Bulldogs received two kills from Legault and another by Rud, while Cowie tallied a solo block before Doyle served up an ace to prevent an Aztec comeback. Following a night of extended fireworks on both sides, the match abruptly ended on an exchange of service errors.
 
Defensively, SDSU had three players post double-digit dig totals, led by McKenna Douglas, who finished with a match-high 19 scoops, while Darnell finished with 16, followed by Merk’s career-best 10. In addition, Schraeder (6 kills) led the team with four total blocks, while Underwood and Haynie registered two solo stops apiece.
 
The Scarlet and Black cause was also buoyed by Fatimah Hall’s 34 assists, while Sarena Gonzalez dished out 17 helpers of her own.
 
On the flip side, Cowie registered a double-double with 12 digs and a match-high 41 assists while finishing with four total blocks.
 
San Diego State will be back in action on Saturday when it travels to the Silver State to battle Nevada in another Mountain West encounter, starting at noon PT. The Wolf Pack (5-13, 1-6 MW) halted a seven-match slide on Thursday with a 3-2 home upset of UNLV.