University of Washington
Utah
Washington Stunned Again In Five
November 16, 2014 | Volleyball
SALT LAKE CITY – Washington's unblemished season hit a big bump in the mountains this weekend, as for the second time in three nights, the second-ranked Huskies were upset in five sets. Tonight, the loss to Utah was all the more painful as Washington had a pair of match points in the fourth set and then owned a 10-7 lead in set five. Ultimately, Utah (16-10, 6-10 Pac-12) would not go away, picking up its fourth straight victory and costing the Huskies (25-2, 14-2 Pac-12) a second loss, 25-19, 23-25, 20-25, 27-25, 15-13.
After winning 13 straight five set matches since 2012, including five this season, Washington came up short in a fifth set for the second time on the road trip. The Huskies slipped two games behind No. 1 Stanford in the Pac-12 race with four matches remaining. This was the first time the Huskies lost to Utah since the Utes joined the Pac-12, falling to 7-1 against them. Utah swept the Los Angeles schools at home last weekend to turn its season around.
“We battled hard, I'm proud of the effort, we played well at times but at the end of games we weren't sharp,” said Head Coach Jim McLaughlin. “Utah played better than we did. We were up in a couple games and should have put it away, but they made plays and we didn't.”
The Huskies had not hit under .200 all season prior to this weekend, but did so for the second straight match, hitting just .190 tonight compared to .259 for the Utes. Washington won most of the superlative categories, with 13.5 blocks to 7.0 for Utah, and six aces to just three for the Utes, but both teams made 26 errors, while the Huskies had 60 kills and Utah managed 74.
Senior Krista Vansant had 24 kills, on a season-high 76 swings. Junior Lianna Sybeldon had nine kills and nine blocks, while hitting .533, but the Huskies couldn't get her involved enough over the final two sets. Freshman Crissy Jones had a career-high 11 kills, hitting .250 with five blocks, and senior Kaleigh Nelson hit .323 with 12 kills and five blocks. Junior Katy Beals had a double-double with 31 assists and a season-best 14 digs. Five different Utah plays had double-figure kills, led by the 18 for Chelsey Schofield.
In the first set, Utah opened with a block and then had a couple kills off the Husky block and out for an early three-point lead. Kaleigh Nelson earned UW's first kill by hitting off the block on the right for 2-4. Utah extended the lead as the Huskies had trouble passing consistently, and the Huskies had to take timeout trailing 3-9. Sybeldon passed a short serve and then ran for a slide kill out of the break. The Huskies trailed 6-12 with Utah hitting .769 at that point. Vansant had a back row finish for her first kill for 7-12. Nelson had a fourth kill, tipping over the block for 10-15, but the Utes continued hitting in rhythm on their attempts. A block of Vansant made it 10-17 and the Huskies had to burn their final timeout. Crissy Jones got one through the block from the left out of the break, but Utah answered right back. Another Jones kill and a Wade quick kill helped UW get within five at 16-21, but Utah finished the next rally. Washington's first block came from Jones and Sybeldon for 18-23, but Utah answered again to earn six set points. Sybeldon saved one with a kill, but Bailey Bateman put a quick away on the next point to finish it, 19-25. Utah hit .432 in the set, while UW warmed up to .303 but were outdug, 12-18, and missed three serves.
Nelson and Sybeldon rejected Chelsey Schofield for 2-2 in the second set, after Schofield had hit .636 with seven kills in set one. Tanner got UW's first ace and first lead of the evening at 4-3, but Utah answered on the next point to tie it. Utah went on a 4-1 run for a 6-8 advantage before Jones put one away crosscourt from the right. Nelson had a big kill after a long rally to stop the Utes momentum and make it 8-10. Washington got it down to 10-11, but Schofield had a kill and then Nelson missed trying to tool the block and the Huskies took timeout at 10-13. Vansant hammered one off the blockers on UW's first swing out of the timeout, then Sybeldon hit down a ball above the net to get back within one. The Huskies then received another huge shot of adrenaline as a marathon rally with a couple diving digs from Strickland was ended by Jones high off the hands to tie it up. Utah was then called for a lift and the Huskies were back up, 14-13, and Utah took time. Utah got a quick kill from the middle to break the 4-0 Husky run, then blocked Vansant to go back up one. After another Utes point, Vansant killed from the left to snap the run, then she served up an ace to tie it back at 16-16. Sybeldon crushed a Tanner set for 17-18 Utes. A tough serve from Tia Scambray resulted in a Utah setting error to tie it at 20. But Utah got the sideout and then put down another ricochet above the net to take the 20-22 lead and force UW's last timeout. Vansant won the next point after a tense rally, as Wade made the key bump set for 21-22. Washington then posted a triple block to tie it at 22-all. Schofield killed in serve-receive to take the lead back, but Vansant hammered down the Beals set for 23-23. Utah's next swing found the antenna, and the Huskies reached set point, 24-23, with Utah taking timeout. On the next point, Vansant made a quick arm swing to dig the Schofield shot, and Tanner ran in to back set to Jones who went up the right sideline for the kill, taking the set for the Dawgs, 25-23.
Some tough Husky serving helped force a couple early Utah errors as the Huskies led 3-1 to start set three. Utah tied it, but another tough serve from Tanner made it 5-3 Dawgs, to which Utah came right back with two more until Vansant ended a long rally with a kill from the left for 6-5. The teams continued to meet up at each point, Utah inching ahead for the first time at 8-7, but the Huskies tying it back up. Wade had a kill on a perfect Beals set for 9-9, and Vansant slammed one for 10-all. Wade then sent an ace off the defense to put the Huskies back up one, 11-10. She then went short and added another off the same target for 12-10. Wade then had a dig and that led to a Vansant transition kill for 13-10 and Utah took timeout. Vansant had a look at an overdig on the next point but was dug and Utah survived a frantic rally to snap Wade's serving run. That sparked a 4-1 run as Utah came back to tie it up at 14-14 after Jones missed out on two in a row. Vansant got the lead back with a kill off the block. Sybeldon continued her hot hitting with a couple kills to keep UW moving ahead. The Utes retook the lead but Jones got one off the back row defender to tie it at 17. The Huskies moved back up, 20-19, on another ace from Wade, then Schofield's swing clipped the antenna and Utah took time at 21-19 Dawgs. Utah got the kill in serve-receive out of the break, but Vansant rolled one to the corner after a long rally for 22-20. Scambray had a big dig and Tanner found Jones for a kill and a 23-20 lead. Vansant hit down in transition once again to get the Huskies to set point, 24-20. Sybeldon and Jones ended it on the next rally, stuffing the quick attempt in the middle for 25-20, as the Huskies closed the third set with four in a row.
Nelson and Wade started the fourth set the way the third ended, stuffing a quick attempt from the Utes. The duo teamed up again for another rejection on the second rally. After another long back-and-forth, it was Vansant leaping up to roof a third in a row for 3-0 Huskies before the Utes put the next point away with a kill. Utah floated an ace to the back line that UW let go to tie it up and then the Utes went ahead with a Bateman kill before Vansant answered. A fourth Husky block put the Huskies back on top by one, and then Jones killed in transition for 7-5. Sybeldon and Jones stuffed Schofield after a tight set, and it was back to an 8-5 lead with Utah calling time. The Utes snapped the 4-0 run on their next swing, but Sybeldon fired back from the middle. An ace from Vansant to the corner made it 10-6, and then Sybeldon and Jones earned the sixth stuff of the set for 11-6. The Huskies made a couple errors to let Utah back within three, and the Huskies called timeout. Utah had a double, and then a pancake dig from Tanner eventually led to a Utes error to get the lead back to 13-8. But Utah marched back again with a 3-0 run for 13-11 before Jones put one down in serve-receive. A Utah error and a Vansant roll shot into the center of the court pushed it back up to 16-11. But once again, just when UW seemed to have control, Utah rallied with four in a row to get within one. Nelson killed one from the left and another from the right for 18-16, and then a Wade serve led to a free ball that Vansant killed for 19-16 and Utah took its last timeout. The Utes got a kill on a touch call out of the break, and then Sybeldon was blocked for 19-18. Vansant sailed her next swing long out of system, and it was tied, 19-19, and UW took time. In serve-receive, Nelson put down the Beals set on the right for 20-19. The Dawgs then resurrected the block again, Sybeldon and Vansant stuffing Shelby Dalton for a two-point lead. The Utes got a quick kill, and then Vansant missed trying to hit down an overpass and it was tied again. Scambray overpassed and Utah killed it to take the lead, 21-22. A Vansant tip fell to tie it, 22-all, and Utah swung the next one long as the Dawgs scratched back ahead. Utah answered with a tip kill for 23-23. Utah had a swing at the next rally but Schofield missed wide out of the back row for match point Huskies. Utah saved it with a kill in serve-receive. Tanner back set to Jones who slammed one down for 25-24. The Utes were in trouble but tipped one deep and it fell to keep things going. Then the Utes setter, after a long rally, pushed a second contact into the far corner and it landed in for set point Utes. The Huskies seemed to have a block on the next point, but it went down off Utah and bounced up and over at a sharp angle onto UW's side and down for an accidental kill, for 25-27, and the match went to a fifth.
The Dawgs went right to Vansant in serve-receive to start the fifth and she put it away with one big swing. Utah missed a pair of serves as the Huskies led, 3-2. Jones hung in the air to stop a Utah tip attempt and stuff it down for the first point on serve, and then Utah overpassed the Vansant serve and was called for a back row violation as the setter tried to save it above the net. Utah took timeout with the Huskies up 5-2. A double was called on the Utah setter to add one more point before Utah got a kill to snap the run and make it 6-3. Jones missed just wide from the right side but then atoned for that miss with a kill for 7-4. Utah came back with a kill, and then Jones hit long on a disputed swing, as UW emphatically sought the touch call but the refs wouldn't grant it. With the Utes on the 4-1 run, the Huskies called timeout at 7-6. Out of the break, the Huskies let a short serve fall right in for an ace and it was tied. Utah missed its next serve for 8-7 Huskies as the teams switched sides. A crushing rejection straight down by Wade and Nelson earned the next point, and then Scambray put one away in transition for a 10-7 lead and Utah took its last timeout. Utah erased the three-point gap in a heartbeat, with a kill in serve-receive, another in transition, and then a Husky error for 10-10, prompting UW's last timeout. Nelson started the race to the finish with a left side blast for 11-10. After Utah scored, Vansant had several swings on a lengthy rally before finding the sweet spot for 12-11. Utah killed in serve-receive, and then took the lead, 12-13, with a Carly Trueman kill after another long point. Vansant came back with a kill to tie it up at 13. Vansant had another good look in transition on the next point but was dug and Utah put it away to get match point. Utah's serve appeared to be carrying out, but Strickland decided she didn't want to risk it, but the late decision led to a rough pass and the Huskies had to send over a free ball. Bateman made the Huskies pay with the next swing, ending the match, 15-13.
