Friday, February 19
Reno, Nev.
2:00 pm MT
Air Force Academy
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Nevada
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Air Force
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Photo by: Trang Le
Falcons Drop Four-Set Match to Nevada
2/19/2021 6:00:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Alex King became the third DI Falcon to tally 1000 digs in a career during today's match.
RENO, Nev. – The Air Force volleyball team dropped a 3-1 contest to Nevada this afternoon in Reno, falling to 2-3 on the young season with the 20-25, 21-25, 25-19, 23-25 loss.
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Senior Alex King reached a major milestone this afternoon at Virginia Street Gym, as she became just the third Air Force player at the Division I level to tally 1000 digs in a career. She recorded the defining dig in the second set, when she earned the fourth of her eight digs.
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Joi Harvey had another strong outing for Air Force, hitting .727 for the match, with eight kills on 11 swings and no errors. Â The freshman also accounted for three of the team's 16 assisted blocks, while junior Bailey Keith (four), senior Mackenzie Robertson (three), sophomore BrookeLyn Messenger (two), freshman Savannah Neal (two) and freshman Aaryn Scires (two) also assisted on multiple stops. Messenger added a team-leading 12 kills, while senior Jordan Daniels accounted for team-leading marks in service aces (three) and digs (10). Senior Andi Ahlers rounded out Air Force's statistical leaders with 18 assists.
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Messenger opened the scoring with a kill on the initial point of the day, while a Nevada error and a kill from Neal helped the Falcons take the early 3-1 advantage. The Wolfpack scored seven of the next eight points to go up by four (9-5), but the Falcons responded with a 6-2 run of their own to even the set at 11. Ahlers, Keith and Messenger all put down kills during that run, but a 5-0 run by Nevada pushed their lead back to five (16-11). Junior Vittoria Juarez tallied a pair of kills and King added an ace, but the Wolfpack took the opening set by a 25-20 margin.
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Keith and Harvey put down kills to open the second set, but Nevada jumped out to an early 9-3 lead. Another score from Harvey halted the run, while a pair of Robertson/Keith blocks helped bring Air Force within one at the 12-11 mark. The Wolfpack retook a five-point lead (17-12) and the two teams traded the following six points, with Air Force earning its tallies from Juarez and a pair of Wolfpack serving errors. Air Force again cut into the lead, as Keith (kill) and Juarez (ace) helped the Falcons pull within two (21-19), but Nevada scored four of the final six points for the 25-21 win.
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Air Force took a quick 3-0 lead to start the third set, as Scires put down a kill and teamed up with Neal for a block during the Falcons' opening run. Neal added a kill to break a tie at three-all, while a score from Messenger evened the set at five. Like her classmate at the beginning of the set, Harvey registered a kill and assisted Neal on a block during a 4-0 run that put the Falcons up by four (9-6). A solo block from Scires pushed Air Force's advantage to five (12-7), but Nevada scored eight of the next nine points to tie the set at 13 and push its lead to two (15-13). Juarez stopped the run with a kills, while an ace from junior Abigail Collins tied the set at 16. Harvey tied the set at 17, while Collins (kill), Neal (kill) and Harvey/Keith (block) tallied points during a 6-1 run that pushed Air Force out to a 22-17 lead. Keith closed out the set with three-straight kills, as Air Force got on the board with a 25-19 victory.
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While Keith scored the final three points of the third set, Messenger accounted for three-straight scores to open the fourth – and added one more kill to give Air Force the early 4-1 lead. Daniels accounted for her own three-point run several minutes later, as she served aces on back-to-back-to-back plays to give Air Force a six-point advantage at the 11-5 mark. Nevada used a 7-2 run to pull within one (14-13), before tying the set at 16 and taking the lead three plays later (18-17). Harvey and Keith teamed up for another block, while a score from Juarez helped Air Force pull within one (22-21) and back-to-back kills from Messenger tied the set at 23. However, Nevada scored a pair of kills on the ensuing play to win the 25-23 set and secure the 3-1 match.
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The Falcons return to Virginia Street Gym tomorrow (Feb. 20) afternoon, when they wrap up the conference series with a rematch at 1:00 p.m. (PT).
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Senior Alex King reached a major milestone this afternoon at Virginia Street Gym, as she became just the third Air Force player at the Division I level to tally 1000 digs in a career. She recorded the defining dig in the second set, when she earned the fourth of her eight digs.
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Joi Harvey had another strong outing for Air Force, hitting .727 for the match, with eight kills on 11 swings and no errors. Â The freshman also accounted for three of the team's 16 assisted blocks, while junior Bailey Keith (four), senior Mackenzie Robertson (three), sophomore BrookeLyn Messenger (two), freshman Savannah Neal (two) and freshman Aaryn Scires (two) also assisted on multiple stops. Messenger added a team-leading 12 kills, while senior Jordan Daniels accounted for team-leading marks in service aces (three) and digs (10). Senior Andi Ahlers rounded out Air Force's statistical leaders with 18 assists.
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Messenger opened the scoring with a kill on the initial point of the day, while a Nevada error and a kill from Neal helped the Falcons take the early 3-1 advantage. The Wolfpack scored seven of the next eight points to go up by four (9-5), but the Falcons responded with a 6-2 run of their own to even the set at 11. Ahlers, Keith and Messenger all put down kills during that run, but a 5-0 run by Nevada pushed their lead back to five (16-11). Junior Vittoria Juarez tallied a pair of kills and King added an ace, but the Wolfpack took the opening set by a 25-20 margin.
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Keith and Harvey put down kills to open the second set, but Nevada jumped out to an early 9-3 lead. Another score from Harvey halted the run, while a pair of Robertson/Keith blocks helped bring Air Force within one at the 12-11 mark. The Wolfpack retook a five-point lead (17-12) and the two teams traded the following six points, with Air Force earning its tallies from Juarez and a pair of Wolfpack serving errors. Air Force again cut into the lead, as Keith (kill) and Juarez (ace) helped the Falcons pull within two (21-19), but Nevada scored four of the final six points for the 25-21 win.
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Air Force took a quick 3-0 lead to start the third set, as Scires put down a kill and teamed up with Neal for a block during the Falcons' opening run. Neal added a kill to break a tie at three-all, while a score from Messenger evened the set at five. Like her classmate at the beginning of the set, Harvey registered a kill and assisted Neal on a block during a 4-0 run that put the Falcons up by four (9-6). A solo block from Scires pushed Air Force's advantage to five (12-7), but Nevada scored eight of the next nine points to tie the set at 13 and push its lead to two (15-13). Juarez stopped the run with a kills, while an ace from junior Abigail Collins tied the set at 16. Harvey tied the set at 17, while Collins (kill), Neal (kill) and Harvey/Keith (block) tallied points during a 6-1 run that pushed Air Force out to a 22-17 lead. Keith closed out the set with three-straight kills, as Air Force got on the board with a 25-19 victory.
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While Keith scored the final three points of the third set, Messenger accounted for three-straight scores to open the fourth – and added one more kill to give Air Force the early 4-1 lead. Daniels accounted for her own three-point run several minutes later, as she served aces on back-to-back-to-back plays to give Air Force a six-point advantage at the 11-5 mark. Nevada used a 7-2 run to pull within one (14-13), before tying the set at 16 and taking the lead three plays later (18-17). Harvey and Keith teamed up for another block, while a score from Juarez helped Air Force pull within one (22-21) and back-to-back kills from Messenger tied the set at 23. However, Nevada scored a pair of kills on the ensuing play to win the 25-23 set and secure the 3-1 match.
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The Falcons return to Virginia Street Gym tomorrow (Feb. 20) afternoon, when they wrap up the conference series with a rematch at 1:00 p.m. (PT).
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Team Stats
USAFA
Nevada
Kills
47
40
Errors
30
18
Attempts
112
105
Hitting %
.152
.210
Points
63
65
Assists
41
38
Aces
7
13
Blocks
9
12
Game Leaders
Kills
12
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Kills
8
Aces
2
Blocks
0
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Players Mentioned
S
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
DS/L
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
S/OPP
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
MB/OPP
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