SALT LAKE CITY – Arizona lost in four sets (20-25, 25-21, 20-25, 24-26) to the No. 20 Utes on Thursday night in Salt Lake City.
The Wildcats' duo of
Jaelyn Hodge and
Jordan Wilson both recorded 20 or more kills and 10 or more digs. Hodge led the way with 21 kills and 12 digs while Wilson recorded 20 kills and 11 digs. Arizona's defense totaled eight blocks and five Cats had double-digit digs.
Utah took the first set, 25-20. The match started with a back-and-forth set until Utah gained a three-point lead at 13-10 and Arizona couldn't catch up. The Cats had two blocks but Utah hit .308 to take the opening set. Hodge led Arizona's offense with six kills and Wilson followed with five kills and a solo block.
The Wildcats tied the match with a 25-21 win in the second set. Arizona jumped out to an early lead and controlled the rest of the set to even the match at 1-1. The Wildcats tallied three blocks to hold the Utes to a .262 hitting percentage. Arizona's attack was led by Wilson with seven kills and a .545 clip. Hodge added four kills and
Carlie Cisneros had two kills to help the offense.
The third set went to Utah, 25-20. The set started with both teams trading points until Utah pulled ahead halfway through the set. Arizona's offense was held to a .000 hitting percentage due to Utah's six blocks. Hodge had five kills and
Alayna Johnson had three kills but it wasn't enough for the Cats.
The Cats lost the match after falling 24-26 in the fourth set. Arizona had a 24-21 lead but Utah went on a 5-0 lead to come back and win the match. Utah had four blocks to hold Arizona's attack to a .250 clip. Wilson tallied seven kills for the second set in the match and Hodge had five kills. Cisneros recorded four kills but Utah served four aces to win the set.
Arizona will take on No. 20 BYU on Saturday, November 2 at 12 p.m. MST in Provo, Utah.