Oct. 14, 2005
SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah volleyball team stayed undefeated at home by holding off the Lobos with a 3-1 win on Friday night. Junior Kelly Therkelsen jumped into the UNM All-Time Career Record Book for block assists, surpassing the 10th best peformance to tie for ninth with 206. Senior Nicole Ryan recorded a double-double with 10 kills and 10 digs.
New Mexico came out aggressive, sticking with Utah for 15 ties and 15 lead changes in game one. The final tie, at 20 all, was broken by a 10-2 Utah run as the Utes went on for a 30-22 win. Freshman Michelle Miller and sophomore Samie Weber kept the Lobos in the game, each recording three kills. The Utes’ Whitney Webb hit .667 with four kills.
Utah took a 3-0 lead to start game two and pushed the lead to eight points as the Utes hit game point at 29-21. Therkelsen and senior Chelsea Sondrup put down kills while Ryan slipped in an ace to pull the Lobos within four at 29-25. But the Lobos couldn’t hold of Utah any longer, falling 30-25 in game two. Freshman Sarah Kwasigroch posted a team-high .600 attack percentage (3K-0E-5TA). Utah’s Airial Salvo led for Utah with six kills, hitting .455.
With a 13-13 tie in game three, Miller fueled a 17-10 UNM run to give the Lobos a 30-23 victory. Miller had four kills, two aces and an assist in the final run, hitting .333 in the game. During the Lobos’ surge, Weber added two aces, Kwasigroch chipped in with a kill and an ace while Ryan and Sondrup each recorded a kill and block. Salvo led the Utes with four kills and a block.
New Mexico took a quick 2-0 lead to start game four but Utah rebounded for a 30-23 win to clich the match. Ryan had a team-high five kills while Miller hit .500 (2K-0E-4TA) with two blocks. Salvo hit .400 for Utah on five kills and one error in 10 attempts.
For the game, Miller put down a team-high 12 kills with two blocks. Kwasigroch tied her career high with five kills, hitting a team-best .267 (5K-1E-15TA). Weber added 11 kills while Sondrup blocked a team-high five shots. Freshman Gayle Tripp led UNM in digs with 15. Salvo topped Utah with 18 kills and 10 digs, hitting .359. Utah’s Shelly Sommerfeldt also recorded a double-double with 14 kills and 11 digs.
The Lobos (11-6, 3-4 MWC) head to Provo for a match with 16th-ranked BYU (14-0, 7-0 MWC) on Saturday at 7 p.m. Live stats are available on BYU’s website, www.byucougars.com.