(St. George, Utah - Oct. 23, 2025) - The Trailblazer volleyball team downed Abilene Christian in a marathon four-set battle on Thursday night at Burns Arena.
Led by a career-high 19 kills from
Nana Asiata, Utah Tech (15-4, 6-1 WAC) overcame a 25-27 loss in the opening set to take the next three sets, 25-22, 25-14, 25-23 over Abilene Christian (8-14, 2-5 WAC).
Sydney Reese added 13 kills, her third double digit kill performance of the season, to go along with seven blocks.
Marley Roe chipped in 22 assists and
Casidy Fried notched a season-best 10 blocks.
How It Happened
Despite leading 24-22 in the opening set, the Trailblazers dropped a hard-fought first set, 27-25 with the Wildcats scoring five of the final six points of the set.
Jumping out to an 11-5 lead in the second set after blocks by Fried and Asiata, the Wildcats answered back with a 14-7 run to take a 19-18 lead.
A service error by ACU tied the set at 19 and the Trailblazers scored six of the final nine points of the set capped off by a kill by Asiata to knot the match at one set apiece.
A 5-0 run for the Trailblazers midway through the third set extended UT's lead to 16-9.
Continuing to lead 18-13, the Blazers closed out the set on a 7-1 run finished out by a kill by Reese for a dominant set.
A back-and-forth fourth set saw the set tied at 12 before the Trailblazers went on a 7-3 run after an ACU attack error.
A kill by Asiata extended the Trailblazers to a 22-18 lead, but ACU tied the set at 23 before UT closed out the win with a kill from Reese and an attack error to complete the tough victory.
Numbers to Know
- The Trailblazers stayed perfect at home moving to a perfect 6-0.
- Utah Tech moves to 6-2 all-time against Abilene Christian and 3-0 at home against the Wildcats.
- The Trailblazers led ACU in hitting percentage (.196-.054) & blocks (18-10) while the Wildcats led the charge in kills (53-48), service aces (4-2), digs (65-55) & assists (51-46).
- Asiata's previous career high for kills was 18 set last season at Northern Arizona.
Up Next
The Trailblazers are back in action on Saturday afternoon for a first-place showdown at Utah Valley (9-9, 5-1 WAC) at 1 p.m. at Lockhart Arena.