FULLERTON, Calif. - The University of Idaho volleyball took a 2-1 set lead but could not hold on as Cal State Fullerton rallied to hand the Vandals their first loss of the season in the final match of the Crowne Plaza Titan Classic.
The match featured 204 total points and lasted two hours and twenty two minutes. Idaho fell to 2-1 on the season after set scores of 25-23, 23-25, 25-14, 14-25, 14-16. Cal State Fullerton improved to 3-0 overall.
"This was a great match. Cal State Fullerton is a good team and they are going to have a good season. Although I'm never happy with a loss, I loved how our team competed. It came down to a few careless errors at the end of a long match and we need to execute in this type of situation," Idaho coach Debbie Buchanan said.
Anna McKinney and Kelsey Taylor were selected to the Crowne Plaza Titan Classic All-Tournament team. McKinney totaled 20 blocks for the tournament and finished with 11 kills and a .270 hitting percentage. Taylor blocked 13 balls and added 13 kills, a .302 hitting percentage, six digs and a service ace.
Sarah Conwell totaled 18 kills, four digs, four blocks and two aces in the Cal State Fullerton match and Alicia Milo came off the bench and added 11 kills, seven digs and five blocks. McKinney tallied nine blocks and five kills without an error, Katie Tribley set a career high with 34 assists, and Meredith Rice finished with 16 digs.
As a team, Idaho finished with a .185 hitting percentage but allowed the Titans to finish at .226 with 71 kills. The Vandals held a 14-6.5 advantage in blocks and finished with nine service aces, but Cal State Fullerton held a 67-50 margin for digs.
Idaho held a 13-11 lead in set five, but a kill from CSF and a Vandal attack error let the Titans tie the score. The teams exchanged attack errors to tie the score at 14-14 before another Idaho attack error gave the Titans the lead. The home team finished off the match with a kill on the next rally.
Idaho is on the road again next weekend for three games at the Alexis Park Classic hosted by UNLV. The Vandals begin the tournament vs. Loyola Marymount Friday (Sept. 4) at 4:30 p.m.
