Southern Utah University’s volleyball team was swept 3-0 on Tuesday, Sept. 28 by their rivals from the south, Northern Arizona University.
It was a rough performance for the Thunderbirds in what continues to be an up and down season. They now sit at 5-10 overall, and 2-3 in the Big Sky Conference. The tale of the match was SUU’s .067 hitting percentage, compared to .276 from the Lumberjacks.
NAU started off strong and established themselves early as they began the very first set with a 10-2 run. The Thunderbirds did not know how to respond and lost the set 25-16. The second set was much of the same, with the SUU never scoring more than two points in a row. They lost the second set 25-15.
The Thunderbirds finally showed signs of life in the third set when they put together a 4-0 run to tie the score at 15, but NAU immediately followed with a run of their own to get up to 24. SUU made one final push but ultimately lost that set 25-21.
Stacey Hone led the T-Birds with six kills while Ronnie Robinson and Carissa Richie each added five. Richie also had three blocks and Rachel Wieber had 13 digs. The Lumberjacks advance to 5-7 on the year, and 3-0 in the Big Sky Conference.
The Thunderbirds play again on Thursday, Sept. 30 when they will head to Greely, Colorado to take on the University of Northern Colorado. The Bears are currently 10-3 and 2-0 in conference. The match is set to begin at 6 p.m. and can be streamed live on ESPN+.
Story By: Christian Esparza Sports@suunews.net
