LOGAN, Utah – The No.12-ranked UCLA women’s volleyball team fell to Utah State, 3-1 (25-27, 27-29, 25-22, 19-25), in its season opener at the Wayne Estes Center Friday evening. Middle blocker Anna Dodson led all Bruin scorers with 12 kills at a .321 hitting percentage.
Junior Iman Ndiaye joined Dodson in double-figure kills with 10.
UCLA (0-1) moves to 49-4 all-time in season openers and 7-5 in its all-time series with the Aggies (2-0).
Utah State’s Tatum Stall put up a double-double effort with 11 kills and 11 digs while Kennedi Boyd had an efficient 10 kills at a .643 clip. Opposite hitter Kylee Stokes notched a match-high 14 kills.
UCLA tallied 20.0 total team blocks for its most since a 3-2 victory over San Diego on Sept. 2, 2018 (22.0 blocks). Four separate Bruins – Ndiaye, Grayce Olson, Francesca Alupei and Matti McKissock – each recorded two solo blocks, and Alupei led with seven total (2-5).
Six players saw their first action in a Bruin uniform. Defensive specialist Katie McCarthy, who redshirted her freshman season, snuffed out a team-leading 11 digs.
Sophomore defensive specialist Peyton Dueck, a transfer from Cal Poly, served a team-high three service aces. Dueck ranked second in the Big West in the category a year ago.
Matti McKissock, a graduate transfer from Georgia Tech, put up 38 assists, and her former ACC counterpart Mackenzie Cole from Duke recorded six digs.
Freshmen outside hitters Grayce Olson and Cheridyn Leverette both got on the court. Olson batted two solo blocks and swung for five kills.
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