This past Friday night, fans lined up in front of the Huntsman Center eager to see the volleyball team face off against the Bruins of UCLA. The MUSS and other Utah fans totaled 4,068, the second largest crowd of all time.
Even with a loss, the Utes put up a good fight for the majority of the match. Dani Drews had an outstanding performance, leading the team with 18 kills and 20 digs. Bailey Choy had three service aces and finished with 32 assists and 11 digs completing her seventh double-double this season.
UCLA started the match off leading with the Utes trailing close behind them. Although the Utes put up a good fight, UCLA took the win 25-21.
The Utes turned around strong in the second set starting off with a run of 9 bringing them ahead to 1-10. The Utes led the set with as many as 12 points. UCLA could not recover, and Utah took the set 25-18.
“I definitely think we were communicating a lot more,” Choy said in the post-game interview. She spoke heavily about what the team did differently during the second set to take the win.
UCLA started off leading with as many as eight points in the third set. Utah pushed hard and caught up to UCLA with a 9-2 run, eventually tying the score at 22. With students and fans on the edge of their seat, the Utes ended up spoiling three set points and had one of their own spoiled with UCLA finishing off taking the set 29-27.
UCLA started off with the momentum from the third set quickly taking the fourth set 25-13. The Bruins taking the win in four 3-1.
“I think we need to focus on meshing as a team, and really understanding people in different situations will help our team chemistry a lot,” Choy said.
The Utes are on the road once again this weekend to play No. 22 Washington State and No. 13 Washington. The first match will be at Washington State on Friday, Sept. 28 at 8 p.m. MT.