Sophomore Macky Treanor and junior Lauren Bakker led Utah Valley University to a 3-0 sweep (25-22, 25-22, 25-21) over in-state rival Utah State on Senior Night in front of a season-high 1,829 fans at the PE Building on Monday evening. Treanor paced the Wolverines offensively with 13 kills, while Bakker led the way defensively with seven blocks.
Bakker also recorded nine kills for UVU (13-16) in the contest while senior Kalani Norris added seven. Freshman Madison Wolford chipped in six kills and four blocks, while senior McKenna Tait anchored the back row with a match-high 17 digs.
Bakker, who previously became UVU's all-time leader in solo blocks and total blocks last week, set her third blocking record in as many matches in the contest. The Layton, Utah, native passed Jessica Endres (2004-07) early in the opening set for first place in the record books for block assists Monday. The middle blocker now leads Utah Valley in that category with 386 for her career.
With the Wolverines trailing by just a point early in the opening set at 7-6, the visiting Aggies (12-13) managed to piece together a 5-0 run to take a 12-6 advantage. UVU later used a 6-1 run to get back into the set and pull within one at 18-17. The momentum stayed with the Wolverines from there as they later took their first lead since the opening point of the match at 21-20 on an Aggie attack error. UVU managed to close out the set by scoring four of the next six points to take the frame by a score of 25-22. Treanor, who was tabbed the WAC Player of the Week earlier Monday, led the way for UVU with first-set six kills.
The second set stayed tight until the Wolverines managed to reel off four unanswered points to take an 18-14 lead. The Aggies answered back with three straight points to pull within one, at 18-17, but that was as close as USU got as UVU took a two sets to none lead with a 25-22 second-set victory. Bakker paced the Wolverines in the frame with five kills and three blocks.
Following the intermission break, the Aggies held the upper hand early in the third set as they jumped out to an 8-4 advantage. The Wolverines quickly closed the gap, however, by scoring five of the next six points to tie it up at 9-9. UVU later took a 16-13 advantage thanks to back-to-back aces from senior Jen Hardman. The Wolverines later stretched their lead to four late, at 23-19, following a solo block from Bakker, but back came USU as it pulled within two at 23-21. UVU finished off the sweep two points later following a fitting block assist from Bakker — UVU's new all-time leader in block assists — and sophomore Kiahna Steiner.
The victory marked UVU's third in a row and fourth over Utah State in its last five tries. The Wolverines finished their home season with an 8-4 record at the PE Building in 2014.
The contest marked the final home match for four Wolverine seniors, as Hardman, Norris, Tait and Cassie Wahlin were honored prior to first serve.
The Wolverines now head on the road for their final two matches of the regular season this weekend. UVU returns to league action to take on Bakersfield in California on Thursday at 8 p.m. MT, and then heads to Phoenix to face Grand Canyon on Saturday at 1 p.m. MT. The Wolverines then return to Bakersfield, California, the following weekend (Nov. 20-22) to take part at the 2014 WAC Tournament. UVU is currently tied for third place in the WAC standings with a 7-5 conference record.
Treanor & Bakker lead UVU to sweep over Utah State on Senior Night
Utah Valley University volleyball coach Sam Atoa and senior Cassie Wahlin talk about UVU's sweep of Utah State, 3-0, on Senior Night in Orem, Utah, on Nov. 10, 2014.
James Warnick is an assistant sports information director at Utah Valley University. For more information about Wolverine athletics, visit WolverineGreen.com.