After playing against each other on Oct. 9, the Southern Utah University women’s volleyball team hosts Abilene Christian University on Saturday, Oct. 25, at 12:30 p.m.
This game will be played in the America First Event Center and can be streamed live on ESPN+.
Southern Utah
After winning their first conference game of the year on Oct. 4, Southern Utah has lost three-straight games including back-to-back games being swept 3-0. SUU is 2-15 on the season and 1-5 in the Western Athletic Conference.
Offensively, outside hitter Victoria Zibecchi leads a very balanced SUU offense that relies on contribution from a multitude of players. Zibecchi leads SUU with 155 kills, followed by Kaitlyn Hoelker with 116 and Addyson McArthur with 106 kills.
On the other side of the ball, SUU is led by Kaitlyn Aleshire and Amaya Tobias. Aleshire, a junior from Aurora, Illinois, leads SUU with 60 blocks. Tobias has seen an uptick in play. She has played well up front, recording 57 blocks.
Abilene Christian
Entering this week, Abilene Christian has looked like a different team away from Moody Coliseum. The Wildcats are 5-8 at home and at neutral sites but 1-5 on the road. ACU is 8-13 on the season and 2-4 in the WAC.
Despite the record, ACU has one of the conference’s best all around players. Hannah Gonzalez, a junior from Lucas, Texas, ranks No. 6 in the WAC with 213 kills and No. 8 averaging 2.66 kills a set.
Defensively, Gonzalez also leads the way for the Wildcats with 62 blocks on the season. Abby Christian has also been a key contributor to this ACU team. Christian has recorded 169 digs on the season.
Keys to victory
In order for Southern Utah to come out on top, there are three keys to the success of SUU.
— Finish each set strong. Southern Utah has struggled as of late closing out matches.
— Limit the mistakes on offense. In their last match, SUU recorded a negative kill percentage. If Southern Utah can limit the mistakes, they can keep themselves in the match.
— Stopping the momentum. In SUU’s last match against ACU, the T-Birds lost three-straight sets. Southern Utah will need to stop the ACU momentum.
Author: Jack Paul
Photographer: Gannon Lovisa
Editor: Heather Turner
