Kansas City
8-7,1-4WAC
Utah Valley
6-11,1-4WAC
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kansas City | 22 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 15 | 3 |
| Utah Valley | 25 | 22 | 27 | 23 | 11 | 2 |
Volleyball Uses Harrington's Big Day to Defeat Utah Valley in Five
10/10/2019 4:26:00 PM | Volleyball
Roos Move into Sole Possession of Second Place in WAC
OREM, Utah - On a day where Kansas City volleyball needed everything clicking to take down Utah Valley, the Roos answered the call. Four players set or tied career highs (Raina Smith, 12 kills; Alli Schomers, nine kills; Maddie Renn, 24 digs; Alex Ratzlaff, five aces), Alicia Harrington set a team season-high with 22 kills, and Kansas City pulled out the five set victory (22-25, 25-22, 25-27, 25-23, 15-11).
"We battled and put ourselves in a position to win throughout the match, and then we were tough down the stretch," Head Coach Christi Posey said. "We're proud of how our team battled."
Harrington came out ready to play right away, throwing down five kills in the first set. The tone for the whole match was set early, as each team traded punches back and forth. Utah Valley would make a run, and Kansas City would respond. Eventually, the Wolverines were just a bit too much for the Roos and on their fourth attempt at set point, Jasmine Niutupuivaha gave UVU the advantage.
"Alicia has a strong determination to make an impact in several areas. One of her greatest qualities is putting the team first," Posey said.
The battle had commenced, and the Roos needed to respond in the second set. Smith gave Kansas City a spark, with four kills at crucial moments. Her second kill gave them a 15-14 lead, which the Roos would not surrender for the rest of the set.Â
The third set was a test for both teams, as neither could gain momentum and pull ahead for good as they had in the first two sets. Utah Valley built up a 12-8 lead early, but the Roos chipped away and a kill by Schomers knotted the score at 17-17. The Roos had an opportunity to take the set at 24-23, but UVU's Megan Childs put down two kills and assisted a block to give the Wolverines the 2-1 advantage.
It was do or die for the Roos in the fourth set. Schomers's ball distribution picked up as she tossed out 10 assists to four different hitters, and she timed her own attacks perfectly, sneaking over two kills. Utah Valley used a 5-2 run at the end of the set to make things interesting, but a Smith kill ended the set and forced a race to 15.
Schomers had a career day, coming just one kill away from posting a triple-double. Her 52 assists and four blocks both came within one of career-highs, and her nine kills came on an incredible .692 hitting percentage.
"Alli is continuing to grow as an offensive minded setter," Posey said. "She is working hard to provide a good mix to keep defenses off balance. An aggressive setter always opens things up for hitters."
Alex Ratzlaff, in her return to the court after missing the past two matches due to injury, had a career day from behind the service line. Her biggest run of the day came in the fifth set, with the Roos trailing 10-8. She sent across an ace to bring Kansas City within a point, and then used an unforced error by the Wolverines, another ace, a kill by Mykal Sadler and two straight blocks to give the Roos a 13-10 lead.Â
"Alex provides great stability to our serve receive and our defense," Posey said. "Her toughness adds so much to our team. She was locked in and served great at end game. Her return to the court was a terrific lift."
Kills by Harrington and Ty Lukes would end the match and give Kansas City their first five-set victory since beating the Wolverines in similar fashion at UVU in September of last year.
"The win today was important for so many reasons. Road wins are hard in this league, especially over a quality team like Utah Valley," Posey said.
The victory moves Kansas City into sole possession of second place in the WAC, behind only New Mexico State, whose perfect 4-0 conference record will be put to the test tonight against CSU Bakersfield. Grand Canyon will have an opportunity to pull back even with the Roos if they defeat UTRGV tonight.Â
The Roos will have tomorrow off as they travel to Seattle, Wash. to take on Seattle U on Saturday at 3 p.m. CST.
