The Boise State women’s volleyball team claimed first place in the Boise State Invitational tournament last weekend, beating Eastern Washington in a 3-0 sweep in their final match. The strength and determination the Broncos played with was evident against their tough opponent.
“I’m really pleased with the results this week,” Head Coach Shawn Garus said in a press release. “Our team continues to improve. We got challenged, and we overcame that a little bit. We were able to win a couple of close sets.”
Boise State opened their first set with a hot start of three straight aces and a kill to take an early 4-0 lead. Both teams rallied back and forth, but the Broncos were able to take control with 12 kills and 12 assists to close the set out 25-16. Tehya Maeva fueled the offense with 10 assists helping the Broncos maintain a steady lead.
“It’s [a] team effort,” Maeva said. “My passers are doing great right now, and my hitters are putting the ball away.”
Motivation and a collection of kills from the Broncos allowed them to jump to a sustainable lead in the second set. The Broncos were faced with a challenge after Eastern Washington went on a five point run, bringing the Eagles within three points, but late kills from Weinert and Giselle helped the Boise State take set two 25-19.
“All week we have been practicing our height, keeping our talent and swinging high,” Hansen said. “So I think facing all these teams, especially this last team, I think keeping that momentum and just rolling with it throughout the weekend.”
The final set of the match was a thriller. 15 ties and nine lead changes found Boise State down 18-20. After calling a timeout to discuss their plans, the Broncos came back into the game with the plan to finish strong. Dreves delivered two kills to regain the lead 22-20, and errors from Eastern Washington allowed the Broncos to win the final set 25-22.
“We talked about how we want to finish the weekend,” Maeva said. “Especially compared to how we finished last weekend. That was a big emphasis for us and I’m proud of us that we came through tonight.”
With the win, the Broncos captured the Boise State Invitational tournament championship with Amelia Hansen being named tournament MVP. Additionally, Sydney Dreves, Tehya Maeva and Azlynn Tittmann were named to the all-tournament team.
Boise State will travel to Pocatello to play in the Idaho State Tournament Sept. 17-19.
