Volleyball Victorious Against Vaqueros

Friday, September 20

Edinburg, TX

5:00 PM

Washington State University

10-1

Texas Rio Grande Valley

6-7

Washington St.

UT Rio Grande Valley

September 20, 2019 | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

WSU bounces tournament host UTRGV in four sets.

By: Athletic Communications

EDINBURG, Texas – Washington State volleyball saw the winning streak continue Friday evening, picking up the 3-1 victory over the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.

Set scores from the match were: 25-15, 25-16, 23-25 and 25-21 in favor of the Cougars (10-1).

The opening set of this match saw the Vaqueros of UTRGV (6-7) out in front of Washington State early on at 5-2 after three consecutive points by the tournament host. WSU quickly found its' rhythm, posting a 5-0 scoring run, all of which featured errors from the Vaqueros, and jumped out to a 9-6 lead. Texas Rio Grande Valley rattled off three straight points once again to tie up the set at 9-9, but the Cougars were just getting started. WSU generated a 10-2 run to take full command of set number one, featuring kills from Magda Jehlarova, Alexcis Lusby, and Jocelyn Urias. The offensive attack of the Cougars only intensified as Pia Timmer and Penny Tusa provided kills of their own to put away UTRGV at 25-15.

Set number two was all Washington State, continuing to ride that wave of momentum from the opening set. The Cougars posted a 10-1 run very early in this second period of play, scoring in multiple ways that included service aces by Timmer, to kills from Charity Bradley and Hannah Pukis, and a dominate block from Urias and Bradley as well. The Vaqueros created a few small runs midway through this set, but it was not enough to touch the lead that WSU had built, as the Cougars went on a 7-1 run to ultimately take set two at 25-16. Reagan Cooper and Timmer each tallied multiple kills during this set clinching run, which saw WSU take a 2-0 overall lead in the match.

Washington State shot out of the gate once again, as the Cougars held a 6-2 advantage to begin the third set. WSU looked to be in total control, building yet another run, at 5-2 this time around, aided by back-to-back kills from Lusby. Texas Rio Grande Valley turned the tables however late in this third set of play, creating a 9-2 run that sealed off the set victory against the Cougars, with the Vaqueros winning it, 25-23.

The final set that would be played in this contest featured a back-and-forth battle between these two programs. Washington State began with a slim 7-5 advantage, built with aces from Alexis Dirige, and Pia Timmer. The Cougars began finding its' groove once again with a 5-1 run, that featured four consecutive kills from Dirige, Lusby, and two by Urias for the 17-11 lead. UTRGV countered right back however with an 8-2 scoring run of their own to tie this set up at 19-19 overall. WSU once again found that offensive success to ultimate put UTRGV away with five straight kills from Tusa, Jehlarova, Urias, and two from Lusby for the 25-21 win.

STAT OF THE MATCH
Hannah Pukis post her second career double-double in the win with career-highs in both assists with 46, and in digs at 13. Hannah added four kills, and one block assist to her stat sheet as well.

INTO THE TWITTER-VERSE

S4 | @JehlarovaMagda picks up her 5th kill of the night!

WSU 14-10#GoCougs | #CougsVsEverybody pic.twitter.com/njWGofznYm
— Cougar Volleyball (@WSUCougarVB) September 21, 2019

S3 | BLOCK! @29413Urias & Timmer with the stop!

WSU 18-14#GoCougs | #CougsVsEverybody pic.twitter.com/oGtyApUNhx
— Cougar Volleyball (@WSUCougarVB) September 21, 2019

MATCH NOTES

Alexcis Lusby led WSU in kills with 14 during the contest, along with leading the team in hitting percentage at .700 overall.
Four total Cougars found themselves in double digits in the dig stat category with Alexis Dirige leading with 16, followed by Pia Timmer and Pukis with 13 each, and Penny Tusa at 10.
Additionally four Cougars totaled four block assists on the night with Jocelyn Urias, Magda Jehlarova, and Lusby each anchoring the defensive front. Magda added one solo block to her stat line as well.
Washington State hits the court tomorrow, Saturday, Sept. 21 in the final match of the UTRGV Tournament against Texas Southern with first serve set for 9 a.m. (PT).