Sept. 17, 2005
Box Score
Orem, UT--Idaho State swept a pair of matches over UC Davis and Texas A&M Corpus Christi Saturday to claim the LaQuinta Utah Valley Invitational title. Felice Yocopis was named the tournament MVP, her third such honor in as many tournaments this season.
After winning a marathon 3-2 decision over host Utah Valley State on Friday night, ISU won two more on Saturday over UC Davis and TAMUCC to secure the title. The Bengals defeated UC Davis 3-0 before taking a 3-2 victory away from TAMUCC. The two wins up ISU's record to 6-7 overall.
"We fought hard to win this tournament," said ISU head coach Mike Welch. "I'm proud of the way our team battled in each game of each match. We hung tough and fought to the very end. This is a great momentum booster heading into conference play."
Against UC Davis, Idaho State recorded a season-best team hitting percentage of .434. The Bengals collected 61 kills on 122 total attacks with just eight team errors. Nikki Havens led the Bengals with a match-high 22 kills on 43 attacks and two errors for a .465 attack percentage. The junior outside hitter also notched four digs and two blocks. Havens was named to the All-Tournament team for her efforts through the three matches.
"We did everything right against UC Davis," Welch said. "It was by far our best hitting performance of the season. We took control from the very beginning and then never wavered. We hit the ball very strong."
Yocopis recorded her 11th double-double of the season with a 19-kill, 17-dig effort. Yocopis was also impressive at the net with 19 kills on 34 attacks and only two errors for a hitting percentage of .500.
Amanda Bevens led the offensive effort with 27 assists, while Lisa Bushman helped with 20 of her own. The ISU defense was led by Katie Hurst, who had 16 digs and Bri Beal with 12 digs.
The Bengals clinched the invitational title by winning a 3-2 match over Texas A&M CC. ISU's Yocopis was up to old tricks, picking up her 12th double-double of the season in just 13 matches. The Phoenix, Arizona native had a team-high 24 kills with 15 digs and five blocks to help ISU to the win. Yocopis' efforts won her a third-straight tournament MVP award.
"The Texas A&M Corpus Christi match was a tough one for us," Welch said. "It was a challenge. TAMUCC played crazy defense on us and it made it difficult for us to score. But again, we hung in there and did what we needed to win."
Havens was also impressive against the Islanders with 21 kills and seven digs, while Jessica Gurney collected nine kills on 22 attacks and just two errors to help the Bengals to the win.
Bushman and Bevens split time setting against TAMUCC as both combined for 55 assists, while Hurst fronted the team in digs with 22.
As a team, TAMUCC put up an impressive 91 digs against the Bengals. ISU did out-block the Islanders 13-3.
"Each week we've gotten better and better," Welch said. "Now, with conference play just around the corner, we feel good about where we are at. Our hard work is starting to pay off for us and we expect it to continue on in to Big Sky play."
ISU continues play in the state of Utah on Sept. 19 when the team travels to Utah State for a 6 p.m. matchup in Logan. The Bengals will then return home to open Big Sky Conference play against Portland State on Sept. 22.
