Even though senior middle blocker Alyssa Schultz went down with an ankle injury at the beginning of the second set, her teammates weren’t going to let it spoil her birthday.
The Idaho volleyball team completed its fourth straight sweep and its sixth in seven matches Thursday as it rolled over the Weber State Wildcats 3-0 in Memorial Gym.
“It’s a great win,” Idaho coach Debbie Buchanan said. “I didn’t think we played up to our level and I think we made too many errors that were careless. For the goals that we have in mind, we have to be that team to set the tone a little bit more.”
Though Schultz wasn’t able to return to the match, Buchanan said her injury is not serious and expects the star senior to start Saturday.
With six sweeps in its last seven matches, Idaho is certainly on a roll at the right time — the heart of its Big Sky Conference schedule. The Vandals (11-10, 7-2 in Big Sky) will play their most important match of the season Saturday at home, when conference leader Idaho State (14-8, 8-1 in Big Sky) visits Memorial Gym.
“I think it’s a big match to give us an opportunity at the end of the season to be able to host (the Big Sky Tournament),” Buchanan said. “We’ve got to get prepared tomorrow and get our heads in the right spot before we play Saturday.”
Idaho opened the match strong, much like its previous three matches. Four early kills by sophomore outside hitter Ali Forde helped secure the first set 25-21 for the Vandals.
Due to Schultz’s injury in the second set, middle blocking duties were left to senior Stephanie Hagins and redshirt freshman Torrin Crawford. In a rare appearance, Crawford chipped in nicely with three kills on the set, and finished with eight overall.
“Any time that you get to do something for your team, it feels good,” Crawford said. “Playing behind Alyssa is always a pleasure. She’s taught me a lot and to be able to come in and fill her shoes was a big treat.”
Buchanan praised Crawford for her consistent positive attitude, and said she’s exited to watch her career grow.
“She’s got one of the best mentalities,” Buchanan said of Crawford. “She understands that she’s waiting for her time. She has such a great attitude about things that its not surprising to me that she was able to come in and do a great job coming off the bench.”
After a 25-22 second-set victory, Idaho battled with the Wildcats until the last point in the third set and eventually prevailed 28-26.
With the win, Idaho moved to 6-1 at home. After losing its opening home match against Northern Arizona, Idaho has notched six straight victories in Memorial Gym.
Conor Gleason can be reached at [email protected]