KANEOHE, Hawaii – In another tough conference matchup, the Dixie State women's volleyball team had to battle back several times against a feisty Hawaii Pacific team but eventually beat the Sharks 3-1 (20-25, 25-18, 25-19, 26-24) on Tuesday night.
 
After dropping the first set, the Red Storm (12-5, 9-0) came back to win three in a row against HPU (7-8, 5-4) with each set being a close one.

Maddie Rex (Tucson, AZ/Sabino), Nicole Koehler (Sandy, UT/Alta) and Kendahl Weiland (Albany, OR/West Albany) all had nine kills apiece. Rex had an ace, nine digs and a block assist, Koehler added two aces and four block assists while Weiland added four more block assists. DSU hit just .152 for the match but held the Sharks to .092.
 
HPU came out hungry in the first set and defeated the Red Storm 25-20. The Sharks were strong at the net and defensively were able to keep balls alive and turn digs into points.
 
Dixie State came roaring back to take an early 12-3 lead in the second set. The early start propelled the Red Storm to a 25-18 win, despite a late surge from HPU.
 
Set three was a battle with both teams looking to take the 2-1 edge. Dixie State had a 17-16 lead but the Sharks tied it up at 18-18. The Storm wouldn't have any more and rattled off five straight. DSU closed on a 7-1 run to win the third set 25-19.
 
The Sharks came out in the fourth set determined to stay out in front and built up a 20-15 lead. Dixie State came back to tie it up at 22-22 and take the lead 23-22. HPU came right back to go back in front 24-23 but Dixie State tied it again.
 
The Red Storm continued to fight and get the next two points to win it 26-24 and take the match 3-1.  
 
Dixie State plays at No. 4 BYU-Hawaii in a matchup of two unbeaten teams in PacWest play on Thursday at 11:30 p.m. MT.