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BOISE, Idaho – The Idaho State volleyball team fell in three sets to Oregon State in its first match of the Boise State Classic, hosted by Boise State at Bronco Gym in Boise, Idaho. The Beavers defeated the Bengals 25-11, 25-23 and 25-19.
Idaho State was led by senior outside hitter
Chloe Hirst with 10 kills and five digs while freshman setter
Chelsea Johnson finished with 29 assists. Sophomore libero
Haylie Keck added 10 digs for her 11th-straight double-figure digs match of the season.
"As a team, we need to continue to raise our game to meet the challenge," Head Coach
Rick Reynolds said. "OSU played well tonight. I thought in set two and three we competed like we can and we were able to push points. It's important for us to find ways to slow down our opponents with our defense."
Oregon State (9-1) made quick work of Idaho State (3-8) in the first set, racing out to a 20-6 lead before closing the set with a 25-11 win. But the Bengal came back with a vengeance in the second set, forcing 10 ties and five lead changes. Junior outside hitter
Abby Garrity put ISU on top with a big kill to open the second set, but Oregon State's Haylie Bennett evened things up with a kill of her own.
With the second set tied 4-all, OSU went on a 6-2 run to take a 10-6 lead, but a 4-0 run by the Bengals, fueled by kills from freshmen
Taylor Meeks and Johnson tied the match at 10-all. Eight plays later the match was once more tied, this time at 14-all, but a kill from Garrity and two consecutive kills from Hirst put ISU up 17-14. Later in the set, the Bengals had extended their lead to four points, 21-17, but a 4-0 Oregon State run tied the set once more, this time at 21-all. A Beaver service error and a kill from Garrity gave ISU a 23-21 lead with the set win in sight, but Oregon State rallied to score four-straight and take the second set 25-23.
In the third set, ISU hit .209 for 14 kills off 43 attempts, but the Beavers were tough to stop as three players hit over .400 for 19 total kills off 44 attempts with just two errors. The Bengals once more started the set with a lead as Garrity terminated for the 1-0 lead. However that would be the only lead the Bengals would claim in the third set despite tying the set six times. With the set tied for the sixth and final time at 19-all, OSU finished with six unanswered points to take the third set 25-19.
The Beavers finished with three players with double-figure kills, led by both Maddie Goings and Mary-Kate Marshall with 13 each, while Haylie Bennett added 11. Kylee McLaughlin finished with a match-high 40 assists, while Kayla Ellis added a match-high 11 digs.
"Minnesota is going to be a challenge in the morning," Reynolds said. "We look forward to continuing to take steps forward in the process of preparing for the Big Sky."
Idaho State continues play Saturday, Sept. 16 against No. 1 Minnesota at 10 a.m. in its second match of the Boise State Classic.
