NM State Aggies vs Utah Valley Wolverines Volleyball 10-24-19

I drove over from the Soccer Complex to the Pan-Am parking lot.  I sat in my truck for a few minutes to warmup from the cold outside.  I also needed to think about what to do for dinner.  It was now a bit after 5:00pm and I’d only had lunch today around noon.  I decided to get a snack at the concessions.  I got the raspberry tea and a lightly salted pretzel for $9.  Ouch.  At least both items tasted really good.  I wasn’t full though.  If the match finished early enough, I thought might go somewhere on the way home.   

Ron told me he’d planned on showing up for soccer late and then coming to volleyball.  He didn’t come for either and I couldn’t get him on the phone once I got inside.  (I found out later he had urgent personal business.)  I did reconnect with Danny and sat with him.  He sounded better out of the cold.  I did keep checking behind me to see if Ron had shown up.      

The Aggies won 3-0 against Chicago State last weekend.  They were still unbeaten in conference.  They’d beaten tonight’s opponent, Utah Valley, last month on the road (9-26-19).  While the Wolverines had a losing record overall, they were 5-3 in conference.  I think they were missing a key player last time.  They’d improved since then. 

There was a good-looking crowd tonight at the Pan-Am, maybe over a 1,000.  Barbara Hubbard was there, the doyenne of the arena, decked head-to-toe in crimson.  However, from looking at attendance figures on the program, that game in Orem, Utah had 1,600 there.  That’s been the biggest crowd the Aggies have played in front of this year.  I wonder if the Wolverines were running a promotion that night.   

I’d seen redheaded freshman Kaleigh Thomas leading a troop of girls out of the ticket office outside.  I guess she had some friends in for the game.  I probably should have called out to her to make her look good, but since autographs were canceled last week, I had no prior relationship with her to do so.  Lovely Swim & Dive team member/marketing intern Grace Laporte, who I have met (10-18-19), was working a camera on the floor with a teammate from right out of swim practice.  I’m assuming this because they both had wet hair, long gorgeous wet hair.  Speaking of great follicles, TV commentator Kelsi Meredith was wearing a bold outfit tonight.  She was in these wide blousy pants with big colorful stripes.  She officially looks good in anything.

I’m alright!  The music was much better here than at the soccer field.  The Caddshack theme is one of my favorites.  The Aggies were having fun warming up.  Brenda Hernandez had a pink tint to her hair for the Awareness game.  (Aggie super fan Tom was there in a pink shirt.)  Julianna Salanoa made a dive attempt practicing digging and her slide went nowhere.  This got a laugh out of the team.  6’3” Lindsay Blakey took a couple of really good swings in practice.  We need her for next year when beautiful Megan Hart is gone (and I start crying).  There was a nice write up of Megan in the Sun-News a couple of weeks ago.  She’s a star. 

  

Emerson was here working with PA Ed.  She’s a busy young woman working two events today.  Ed went over to the Utah Valley coach before the match.  I’m guessing he wanted help pronouncing some of his girls’ names, like Kazna Tarawhiti (a striking young woman), Oferira Petaia, and Jasmine Niutupuivaha.  (They’re all from Hawaii if you can’t guess.  Their website has pronunciation audio clips for them.)  I liked the cool look and name of their tall libero, Seren Merrill.  There’s some other good names here I like, such as Tori Corus, Bailey Christensen, Sadie Hamson, and Abbe Hughes.  I feel like stealing some of these names for characters in a story.  And there’s, Kristen Bell.  If volleyball players had walkup music, I’m hearing something from Frozen.  

   

Once again, the opposition had a very attractive assistant coach, Kylin Munoz.  This is such a deficiency on the Aggies.  In practice, Halle Razo almost ran into her on the bench going for a dig.  I did hear an interview with Aggie Assistant Coach Chris Hertel yesterday.  He seemed like a surprisingly soft-spoken mellow guy to be working with Coach Jordan.  He talked about Analyssa Acosta’s progress this season.  For the first road trip of the season, they almost left her behind, not needing her.  From that, she worked her way into being the starting libero.  She’s an inspirational story.

Set 1

The first thing I noticed in play was that Cat Kelly’s right thigh was bandaged up.  It looked like there was a stick in the back of it.  It didn’t affect her tremendous jumping ability, but Danny noted she was hitting poorly in the match.  She still got her kills though. 

Right out of the gate, the match started with about an exhausting minute-long rally.  The Aggies won that point, but it set the tone for the rest of the game.  This was going to be a dogfight.  The Aggies went up to a 4-0 lead with some great blocking.  5-1, Ashley Anselmo got a kill down the line.  6-1, a hard swing by the Wolverines bounced off Julianna and went over the net for a kill.  That got everyone laughing.  7-2, a UV dig hit the bottom of the scoreboard over the court.  Unlike the rafters in some arenas, apparently that wasn’t in play and the Aggies took the point.  8-4, Megan got her first kill.  Everything was going the Aggies’ way to this point.

8-5 Aggies, Savannah Davison served one into the net.  8-6, Meg made her second mishit on a dig.  8-8, Megan hit one out.  Utah Valley then went out into the lead, 10-9 on a questionable out call on a Cat swing.  This got Coach Jordan yelling at the refs.  13-10 UV, Brigette Lowe was in and got a kill to break up their run.  14-12 UV, the coach started screaming at Cat after another out-swing.  14-13 UV, there was another long rally that went to the Aggies.  The Wolverines made a campfire around a tip and somehow made an incredible save on it.  The media timeout came at 15-13 UV.

Sav got a big kill at 15-14 UV.  It was tied at 17 on a Wolverine attack error.  18-17 Aggies, Brigette got an overpass kill.  18-18, Krysten Garrison had an out-serve.  Aggie serving was otherwise doing well to start.  Utah Valley retook the lead at 20-18, prompting an Aggie timeout.  Cat tied it up at 21 with a kill.  The Aggies retook the lead, 22-21, on another long rally.  Sav made a great dig on the play and Cat won it with a tip. 

23-21 Aggies, Brig had a huge kill that bounced into the stands behind the court.  Timeout Utah Valley.  Cat and Sav goofed off a little with each other in break.  The Wolverines were not going away.  23-23, Brigette had an out-swing.  Timeout Aggies.  Brigette retied it at 24 with a kill.  25-24, Natalie Mikels put some mustard on her serve for an ace.  Timeout Wolverines.  They tied it up again, but out-served at 26-25 Aggies.  Finally, Sav got a wide open overpass kill to end it 27-25 Aggies.  She was grinning as she hit it and kept smiling while the teams exchanged ends.     

Set 2: Aggies 1, Wolverines 0

Pee-ew!  A terrible fart smell overwhelmed my section.  It wasn’t me.  Somebody had beans for diner.  Utah Valley took an early lead, 3-2, on an out-serve by Jules.  Meg got the lead back, 4-3, on an overpass kill.  5-3, Megan and Sav combined on a block.  7-6, Cat had a big swing and the dig went out-of-bounds.  8-8, Cat had an overpass kill.  9-8, Nat came up with another ace.  9-9, the Aggies couldn’t pull away.  Coach Jordan was reduced to yelling at the reserves to get out his frustration. 

Utah Valley took the lead.  At 13-9 UV, the Aggies took a timeout.  Jules got a kill coming out of that, 13-10 UV.  13-11 UV, Halle served up an ace.  14-13 UV, after Jules had had a good serve, the coach brought Kiley Tonge in to serve for her.  She served it out and went right into the coach’s doghouse.  The Aggies tied it at 15 after a couple of Sav kills and a UV attack error.  We were tied at 16 on a block by Meg.  We were tied at 17 as Brig went into the scorer’s table trying to dig a ball.

Utah Valley got out in front, 20-18, on a carry call on the Aggies.  20-19 UV, the Wolverines out-served.  21-20 UV, Cat got a kill.  22-22, Jules hammered one into the court.  It didn’t even bounce as the defender tried to dig it.  23-23, Meg and Ash combined on a block.  Timeout Wolverines.  The Aggies got it to set point, 24-23, as Sav dotted the line.  Timeout Wolverines.

Utah Valley tied it back up at 24, as an out call was overruled as a touch.  Aggie set point #2, 25-24, Meg got a tip in, after UV got a great pancake dig on the point.  The Wolverines made a sub that seemed to confuse the Aggies and forced a timeout.  We tied again at 25 as Megan’s block went wide.  She came back with a kill and set point #3, 26-25.  Oh, there’s that fart smell again.  The Aggies smelled it too.  The Wolverines must have been upwind.  Utah Valley tied it again and won the set 28-26 on a mishit.  The Aggies’ mistakes caught up with them here.

Set 3: Aggies 1, Wolverines 1

During the half, Pistol Pete was in the crowd dancing to Jump In the Line.  He’s very smooth.  Sav had had a mishit on the point, but came back with a kill early at 2-1 Aggies.  They added to the lead, 4-1, as Meg got an overpass kill.  5-1, Nat got a kill on an overpass dig.  She was shaking her head afterward.  7-5, Sav made a hard kill into a couple of blockers. 

10-7 Aggies, Cat and Meg combined on a block.  The Utah Valley coach argued the point.  “Sit down bus driver!”  Ah, that obnoxious loudmouth fan was back behind me (10-10-19).  12-8, Jules and Ash got the block.  14-8, Ash picked up an overpass kill.  15-8, Ashley had a solo block.  “Double ref!”  The fan was still wanting double touches called on the opposition.  Hey, we won the point.  Shut up! 

This took us to the media timeout.  I still wasn’t in the Raising Canes coupon giveaway section.  Fudge.  The video screen showed Savannah as an athletic academic honor student.  She’s a 3.9 GPA Bio-Chem major, if I was reading that right.  Looks, volleyball star, and brains?  When God was handing out the good traits, Sav snuck back in line a couple of times for more.

15-9 Aggies, Nat served it into the net out of the timeout.  Coach Jordan loves that.  16-9, Wolverine blocking turned away several swings until Jules put one through with sheer determination.  16-12, Sav fired wide and the shot bounced into the crowd.  At 16-13, the Aggies called a timeout.  17-13, UV had an out-swing, but the Coach Jordan was still yelling at his girls furiously.  17-15, UV got a big block on Ashley, but she came back on the next point with a kill. 

18-16 Aggies, Megan was blocked.  In the last match with the Wolverines, they triple-teamed her at times.  Analyssa made a great free ball save off-court to keep the point going.  19-16, Meg got the kill on the next point.  You can’t stop her every time.  I saw Annie yelling on the point.  She was fired up.  21-19, after a long rally, Cat fired one way out.  22-19, she came back with a kill.  23-19, a UV defender dug a ball into a teammate’s face.  She was okay, but Utah Valley took a timeout.  Sav finished the set off, 25-19, with a kill in anger.

Set 4: Aggies 2, Wolverines 1

I was exhausted just watching by this point.  Credit to the Aggies’ conditioning, they didn’t show any signs of fatigue.  I’ve seen them get winded before this season in a hard match (10-10-19).  The scoreboard briefly showed Savannah’s kill total a couple of times in the match for a change.  (They haven’t been doing it all season.)  She had 13 at the start of Set 4.

Utah Valley went up 2-1 early on a DT call on the Aggies.  The Coach was yelling again at the refs over the call.  I guess the ref had heard the obnoxious fan’s pleas to call more double touches and obliged.  2-2, UV net serve.  “Ball don’t lie.”  4-3 Aggies, Ash buried one at the feet of a defender with no bounce again.  4-4, Jules out-served.  The fart smell returned.  I blame that.

6-4 Aggies, two UV girls collided on the point.  8-4, Krysten Garrison aced, but at 9-6, Sav out-served.  9-7, Krysten got into the net making a set.  9-9, UV aced on a ball that hit the tape and dropped in.  10-9, Megan broke their run with a kill.  We tied again at 10.  The crowd was upset with the call that gave Utah Valley the point.  The Aggies tied it up at 11, as Lia Mosher hit a defender on the head.  The girl was okay and laughed.

12-11 Aggies, finally a DT on UV.  The loudmouth fan was happy.  13-11, Cat got a tip into the middle of four players.  14-11, Cat got a big kill that bounced into the crowd.  15-11, media timeout.  15-12, Nat served out on the next point.  Coach Jordan was frustrated to the point he almost started yelling at PA Ed and Emerson.  18-13, Ash killed it crosscourt into the sideline.  Jordan Pleasants came in to serve.  19-15, Krysten net served.  When Coach Hertel was asked if Aggie serving had improved over the season, he’d said it was a moment-to-moment thing, not a matter of progress.

The Wolverines started a comeback.  20-16, Meg had an out-swing.  The coach and the team wanted a touch on the point.  20-18, Megan was blocked.  Timeout Aggies.  It was a short talk.  It seemed like Savannah was doing the talking.  20-20, Cat fired one out.  Timeout Aggies.  This time the Coach did the talking.  21-20, Megan bump set Brig for a kill.  Meg gets it done without even swinging.  The Wolverines wanted a foul, but didn’t get it. 

Late in the match, the Aggies went to a strange alignment.  They only had one person blocking and set the rest back to receive.  I wonder if that confused the Wolverines too, as they didn’t take advantage of it.  Nat actually moved a teammate over before a UV serve.  Maybe she got confused where to stand or they were about to get an out-of-rotation foul. 

         

21-21, Utah Valley was right there again.  Krysten dove for a ball.  She missed it and hit the court in front of Coach Jordan.  He started yelling at her while she was still lying on the floor.  You have to laugh.  He’s like a supervillain.  22-21, Jules and Ash combined on a block.  Timeout UV.  Bell Biv Devoe’s Poison was getting the various young volleyball girls in the crowd grooving.  Ups to the music.  24-23, UV long served out at the wrong time.  Match point.  No extra point drama this time.  Ash and Jules finished it on a block.  The Aggies took Set 4, 25-23, and the match, 3-1.

Savanah Davison led the Aggies with 17 kills.  Cat Kelly followed with 14, Megan Hart with 10, and Ashley Anselmo with 9.  Kazna Tarawhiti paced the Wolverines with 15.  The Aggies led 63 to 46 in kills as usual.  However, both teams were even on blocks with 11.  Again, the Aggies had double-digit service errors with 10, but had 4 aces.  That was a heck of a match.  I hope the Aggies don’t face the Wolverines for a third time this season in the WAC Tournament, especially since it’s on their home court.  

Utah Valley had the answer to the Aggies.  They were blocking and digging well.  I can see why Coach Jordan was made mad at the girls.  They didn’t win because they were the more disciplined team.  They just out-talented the Wolverines.  Utah Valley made a few mistakes, but seemed to play a much tighter game generally.  The Aggies kept making mistakes and it cost them a set, but they would not be denied.

Coach Jordan was surprisingly mellow in the postgame interview.  As much yelling as he did during the match, I guess winning against a tough team took the edge off.  On the team Twitter, there was a link to a national volleyball website that interviewed the Coach and Megan and Savannah.  It was about the team’s good ability to attack out-of-system.  This was because they weren’t that good at receiving and passing. 

As well as the team has been playing, Coach Jordan has been frustrated that they’re not playing up to their full potential.  I kind of have to agree with that.  They’re awesome, but could be even better.  If anything, the coach was complimentary in thinking that this team could have a much higher ceiling.

After the match, photographer Gary Mook got a picture of the team with Mrs. Hubbard.  How cool.  Though it went four sets, they were four long sets.  The match went two-and-a-half hours.  I gave up on getting dinner out.  (McDonalds was the only easy place to go to on the way home.  Never mind.)  It was downright cold outside with the sun down.  Behind me, Grace’s S&D teammate came out behind me and cursed the cold.  She was only in a sweatshirt and yoga pants.  I had to settle for cereal and writing recaps when I got home.  There was some disappointment at soccer today, but the double header finished well with a great volleyball win.