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Show 13 Monday, September 11,2006 THE DAILY UTAH CHRONICLE Get out the brooms Volleyball sweeps all three opponents in Utah Classic Cody Brunner The Daily Utah Chronicle ,Jt- ^ • • •S-£.j;7v.;'••'• • " • • « • • . ' . ' • ' , • . - ' • •-, • " - - •-. • • ' • - . - f . . ^ * >'^: MSB "*"V*.- • - , * . : . . •> 1 1 LENNIE MAHLER/ 77;r Datlv Utah Chtorurfc Utah's Lori Baird sends the ball into Missouri State defenders during the Utes' fourth straight 3-0 win at the Crimson Court on Saturday. The U volleyball team was not very accommodating to its visitors this weekend at the annual Utah Classic, disposing of three teams in nine games. Utah State, Missouri State and Temple all fell victim to the U's wrath during the weekend tourney, which also doubled as a home-opening weekend. Emillie Toone led the Utes on defense throughout the tournament, tallying 25 total blocks and garnering MVP honors. She was one of four Utes selected for the all-tournament team. The Utes started the tournament out in convincing fashion last Friday, hitting .515 in the first game and winning 30-25. Though Utah didn't hit nearly as well in the second game (.278), the Utes still came away with an easy 30-21 victory. The Owls tried to fight their way back in the third game, opening up a 6-1 run early, but the Ute defense held strong to give Utah a 30-24 win. Toone led the Utes in their first home game, amassing 11 blocks and hitting .400. Airial Salvo was the kill leader in the contest, throwing down 15 on .382 hitting. On the back row, Connie Dangerfield had a stellar game, picking up 15 digs to pace the Utes. Utah ended up out-hitting the Owls .301-.105. U head coach Beth Launiere was extremely pleased with the team's performance today. "I thought we played well today and really liked how well we executed. I thought today was the best flow this team has had yet this season," Launiere said. The second match of the day saw the Utes taking on in-state rival Utah State. The Aggies kept it close early, tying the first game at 8-8, but Utah utilized a 7-2 run midway through the game to pull away and win, 30-25. Using stellar defense and aggressive attacks, the Utes pulled out to a 19-12 lead in the second game. They sustained that lead for the remainder of the game behind the strength of six Kathryn Lovell kills, winning 30-23. The third game of the night cemented the U's dominance at home as they punished the Aggies, 30-11. "The thing I liked about this match was that we got better as the match went on," Launiere said. "Utah State played very well against us. They played with a lot of emotion and energy, and it took us a while to get them out of system." Utah hit a solid .288 while the Aggies managed a meager -.026 in the match. Freshman Sydney Anderson led the Utes from her setter position, adding up 36 assists, five kills and six digs. Lovell led the Utes in kills on the evening, scoring 13 kills and hitting .267 to pace Utah. Salvo and Dangerfield led the Utes on defense, racking up 13 digs apiece. There is a saying that nobody's perfect, but Lori Baird almost proved the old adage wrong in the third match against Missouri State, hitting a ludicrous .923 to set a Utah single-match school record. Game one turned out to be the closest of the match, with Missouri State pulling out to a 10-8 lead early. The Utes then went on a 6-0 run to take control of the first period, winning 30-22. Dangerfield again led the U from back row with 10 digs. Utah's offense came alive in the second game, taking the first three points of the period and never letting up to win 30-20. The third game was much of the same for the U, jumping out to a 9-1 lead and finishing the tournament off in style, 30-13. Along with hitting a record-breaking .923, Baird also tallied 12 kills to lead the Utes in the championship game. Launiere was pleased with the performance of both Baird and the Utes. "We knew this was the type of match that would be successful for Lori," Launiere said. "She hits the slide very well for us, and that just happens to be hard for Missouri State to defend. I felt like we took away a lot of Missouri State's strengths, and as the match went on, they didn't have many options left." Baird had a slightly different take on why she was so successful Saturday night. "I knew the slide was there, but my team just set me up so well. Sydney (Anderson) did a great job of giving me the ball when I was open," Baird said. Utah hit a solid .383 for the match, which was obviously offset by Baird's stellar performance. The U defense held the Bears to .068 hitting while edging their opponents in total blocks (10.5-8). Helping Baird out on offense was middle-blocker Toone who racked up 11 kills on .500 hitting and also bagged eight blocks. Airial Salvo and Whitney Webb were also selected to the all-tournament team while Connie Dangerfield was the tournament's top libero. Also making the team were Hailey Jeppson (Utah State), Katelyn Panzau (Missouri State) and Sarah Lansing (Missouri State). The Utes hope to keep their four-match winning streak alive this week when they open up Mountain West Conference play against Air Force and Colorado State. c.brunner@ chronicle.utah.edu The Utah Republican Party is looking for students interested in experiencing all levels of campaigning. From working in the most competetive State Legislative Races, to more expansive Federal Campaigns, an internship with the Utah Republican Party will give you a base of experience in all levels of campaigning, while earning some cash to boot. Contract Brian Maxwell at the Utah Republican Party at 801 533-9777 or e-mail bmaxwell@utgop.org for more information. v Utah Republican Party |
