LAS VEGAS – Playing its first intercollegiate match in over 14 months, the San Diego State volleyball team dropped a three-set decision on the road to UNLV (22-25, 21-25, 10-25) in the 2021 spring opener for both teams at Cox Pavilion.
The Rebels out-hit the Aztecs .310 to .147, maintaining a 44-30 advantage in kills and a 44-34 edge in digs to spoil the debut of first-year SDSU head coach Brent Hilliard.
Junior Victoria O'Sullivan paced the Scarlet and Black with 11 kills, hitting .300 for the night on 30 attempts with just two errors, while freshman Heipua Tautua'a launched a six non-returnables of her own to go with a team-high 10 digs.
In addition, SDSU received four kills apiece from senior Erin Gillcrist (3 blocks) and freshman Kennedy Feuerborn (6 assists), while sophomore Ashley Vanderpan handed out 11 assists in her first Aztec appearance.
SDSU built an 9-3 advantage in the opening set, benefiting from four UNLV attack errors and a service miscue, while O'Sullivan knocked down two kills during that stretch to go with a Walker put-away and a Tautua'a service ace.
Shortly thereafter, the Rebels responded with a timely 16-4 run to vault in front for good. Kate Brennan joined forces with three different teammates for a trio of blocks during the surge, while Mariena Hayden posted a pair of kills.
Trailing 19-13, the Aztecs responded with a 9-4 surge, capped by consecutive Tautua'a kills, to cut the margin to 23-22. SDSU was unable to gain the upper hand, however, as back-to-back put-aways by Allison French and Hayden kept the visitors at bay.
The second stanza was another closely-contested affair, as UNLV held a slight edge in kills (14-13). Yet the Aztecs found themselves in pursuit mode for much of the way after forging four early ties.
With the score knotted at 6-6, the Rebels were the beneficiaries of another opportune 10-4 run, capitalizing on two bad SDSU sets, while Hayden added a kill and a service ace.
The Aztecs kept battling, however, narrowing the gap to 21-19, on the strength of four O'Sullivan kills and a Tautua'a solo block to fuel a 9-5 spurt. Unfortunately, UNLV stood its ground, closing with a 5-2 run, sparked by a Shelby Capllonch kill and an Arien Fafard service ace.
Stung, SDSU was unable to muster any momentum in the third frame, totaling just five kills for the rest of the match. Conversely, the Rebels hit .484 for the set, launching 16 kills on 31 swings with just one error. The Aztecs trailed just 8-6 following a Serena Hodson service ace, but UNLV flipped the switch on the afterburner, unleashing a 12-1 blitz to seize control.
Hayden (.348) and Capllonch finished with 10 kills apiece to pace the Rebels, with the latter completing a double-double on a match-high 13 digs. In addition, Brennan (.429) total eight kills and six block assists in the victory.
San Diego State will close out its two-match road series with UNLV on Friday, starting at 6:30 p.m. PT. A link to a live stream will be available on GoAztecs.com via the Mountain West Network.
Aztecs Drop Three-Setter at UNLV in Season Opener
