USU Eastern Press Release
PRICE – Utah State Eastern volleyball defeated the College of Southern Nevada Coyotes 3-2 on Saturday.
In front of the home crowd, the Eagles were pushed to the very end by a tough CSN team.
The Eagles dominated the first set with a 25-18 win led by the four kills from sophomore Sarah Mafi.
“They played great in the first set and were ready to play. They came out and handled their business in the first set,” said Utah State Eastern head coach Danielle Jensen.
That momentum from the first set transitioned to the second set as the Eagles opened the second set with a 5-0 run. CSN came back and made things interesting in the second, eventually taking the second set. The Coyotes had only three errors with a .310 attack percentage in the set.
“We just took them for granted because they are a very talented team,” said USU Eastern’s Taylor Ferrel.
After the break between the second and third set, the Eagles bounced back with a 25-18 set win led by Ferrel’s three kills.
The Coyotes wouldn’t go away in the fourth set and capitalized on the Eagles’ 12 errors to grab the fourth set 25-20.
“Errors always play a part in our games. We are a great team, we are a talented team, but sometimes we get in our own heads and I think errors played a big role in that fourth set,” said Ferrel.
In the fifth set, the Eagles and Coyotes went back and forth until Mafi sealed the win with the last point of the game.
“It was awesome. Mackenzie Carter took care of it last night and Sarah did it tonight. They are the leaders of this team and they wanted that win really bad,” said Jensen.
Carter finished the night with her second straight 20-plus kill game as she put up 21 kills and a team-high 28 digs along with four aces. Mafi had 18 kills and Ferrel finished the game with eight kills and a team-high four blocks.
Saturday’s win gives the Eagles their third-straight win and a 6-4 conference record.
“It feels so awesome. That is something that we have worked really hard for since I started here. I am so glad that we are finally there,” said Jensen.
The Eagles will travel to Twin Falls next weekend for the 2018 Region XVIII Tournament hosted by the College of Southern Idaho. Dates, times and opponent will be released early this week along with broadcast information for the tournament.
-
- Photos by Jeff Barrett
