Box Score SAN FRANCISCO – Facing its toughest test in Pacific West Conference play, the Dixie State women's volleyball team responded with a hard-fought 3-1 win (25-23, 20-25, 25-17, 25-22) over Academy of Art on Friday night.

"That's a great win on the road," head coach Robyn Felder said. "It was a hostile environment that was loud, a big crowd, a band and more. The girls stayed composed and focused."
 
Maddie Rex (Tucson, AZ/Sabino) posted a season-high 21 kills to tie a career high and lead the Red Storm (7-5, 4-0) as they stay undefeated in the early PacWest campaign. She added eight digs.
 
Dixie State hit .301 for the match, highlighted by a third set where the Storm recorded a .500 hitting percentage. The Urban Knights (6-5, 1-2) were pesky, always battling back and hanging around before the Red Storm were able to finish them off. 

"It was a great offensive battle and we stepped up when we needed to," Felder said. "We had huge efforts by our outsides to put the ball away when our passing was struggling."
 
Dixie State was strong at the net with 9.0 total blocks as a team. Shelby Sorenson (Lehi, UT/Lehi) had 33 assists, 10 digs and three aces.
 
Set one fit the bill of a tough matchup right from the start. DSU held a slight advantage at 12-11 early on. The Red Storm pushed the edge to 20-15 but Academy of Art came back to make it 22-22.  An Urban Knight service error, and kills from Kendahl Weiland (Albany, OR/West Albany) and Rex pushed Dixie State to the top to win set one 25-23.
 
Academy of Art responded in set two to take a 16-12 lead.  The Storm cut it back to a one-point game but the Knights got hot and scored four straight, eventually taking set two 25-20. The Storm hit just .073 in the second set.
 
Down 11-8, DSU went on an 8-0 run to take control of the third set and retake the lead 16-11. Dixie State cruised to a 25-17 win and held a 2-1 edge in the match after hitting .500 for the set.
 
After such a strong showing in the third set, Dixie State continued to roll into the start of the fourth set. DSU led 16-9 but Academy of Art still had another late run and mounted a comeback. The Knights rallied to go back in front 19-18.
 
The battle ensued down he stretch and Dixie State held off the surge from Academy of Art for the 25-22 win in the fourth set to seal the 3-1 victory for the match.
 
Dixie State will play at Notre Dame de Namur Saturday at 8 p.m. MT.