Sept. 8, 2007
Box Score
DAVIS, Calif. - Junior outside hitter Haley Larsen recorded 35 kills on 88 attempts to lead Idaho to a 30-24, 25-30, 23-30, 30-25, 15-13 comeback win over UC Davis in the third match of the Hallmark Inn Aggie Invitational women's volleyball tournament at the Pavilion Saturday.
The Aggies fall to 3-5 for the season. The Vandals also move to 3-5 overall.
Freshman Kayla Varney posted team bests of 18 kills and 20 digs for UC Davis. Defensively, Tori Hooper and Kelly Patterson each had seven blocks. As a team, the Aggies had 15 total blocks and 11 aces. Senior right-sider Katelyn Astruc chipped in 12 kills and 17 digs for UC Davis.
Larsen's 35 kills represented more than half of Idaho's offense. Debbie Pederson and Sarah Loney each added 10 kills while Loney and Larsen shared the team lead with 19 digs each.
Larsen powered the Vandals with nine kills in Game 1, helping erase an 8-1 UC Davis start with six kills and two aces in the early going. Setter Kelsey James picked up eight digs in the first frame, while middle blocker Debbie Pederson posted two kills down the stretch to lead IU to the 30-24 win.
UC Davis managed to stay close to Idaho in Game 2 despite hitting more than 100 points lower on offense. Trailing by a 24-23 deficit, Ibekwe served up six straight points to give the Aggies a 29-24 game point. Varney had three kills during the 6-0 run, tooling the right-side block for the 27th point, then clipping the Vandal middles for the 28th. Ibekwe's tough jump serve forced an errant pass for the 29th, then Patterson registered a solo stuff against Pederson for the game-winner. Varney had six kills and eight digs in the Game 2 win.
The Aggies served up six aces in their 30-23 win in Game 3. Patterson had five kills, including three during a middle stretch in which UC Davis crafted a 20-13 lead. Libero Avreeta Singh posted two aces later in the game to keep the Aggies up by a 25-18 margin. However, Larsen turned on the offense in Game 4, hitting eight kills in 22 swings to lead the Vandals and force the rubber game. UC Davis hit just .067 in the fourth, but managed to mount a another late comeback behind Ibekwe's serving before a setting miscue ended the run.
McKinney tallied blocks on the first two points of Game 5 to help IU build a 4-0 start, but UC Davis managed four straight points on three Ibekwe kills. Neither team led by more than two points the rest of the way.
Larsen hit her 35th kill to give the Vandals a 13-12 lead and Conway sent a deep ball to the open Aggie court for what could have been an immediate match point. Her shot fell just beyond the line, tying the score at 13-13. However, she responded on the next ball with a kill into the UC Davis backcourt. Loney pounded the match-winner through the Aggie block to seal the win.
