The Utah State Eastern women's volleyball team traveled to the Bruin Bash, hosted by Salt Lake Community College, for its final preseason tournament of the season. The Eagles were given the task of facing No. 1 Miami Dade College, Odessa College, No. 8 Trinity Valley Community College, and Eastern Wyoming College.
The Eagles opened the tournament with a rematch with No. 1 Miami Dade. The two teams faced off in the season opener, a match which was won by the Sharks, 3-0. In this match, the Eastern opened by taking the first set, 25-22. Despite having the momentum, the Sharks rebounded to take the second set, 25-18. In a back-and-forth battle, the Eagles fell in a close third set, 26-24. Needing to win the final set, the Eagles were unable to force a fifth set, falling to MDC 25-19, and 3-1 overall in the match. Presley Decker led the Eagles with 12 kills in the match.
Eastern had to bounce-back quickly, and did so, winning the first set against Odessa College, 25-23. In the important second set, the Eagles continued to gain momentum, winning 25-23, putting the pressure on Odessa. The Wranglers responded by winning the third set, 26-24, and the fourth, 25-18, to force a fifth set. It was the Wranglers who ended with a 15-11 fifth-set win, taking the match 3-2 over the Eagles. Madelin Newbold found success against the Wranglers, leading the team with 14 kills.
A new day presented new opportunities for Utah State Eastern, facing No. 8 Trinity Valley. The Eagles worked hard in the first set, but TVCC took control and won the first set, 25-21. Eastern was able to put up a fight in the second set, but came up just short, 25-23, finding themselves in a 2-0 deficit. The Eagles were able to extend the match by winning the third set, 25-20. Unfortunately, Trinity Valley was too much for the Eagles, and Eastern fell 3-1 to TVCC. Selah Nickel and Sela Christiansen each recorded eight kills for USU Eastern.
In their final preseason match of the season, the Eagles took on Eastern Wyoming College. USU Eastern proved to be the better team, winning the first set, 25-16. The Eagles continued its domination in the second set, 25-14. To complete the sweep, the Eagles took the third set, 25-20. Madelin Newbold had a nine-kill performance in the Eagles' win.
Next for the Eagles is its home and conference opener against the Colorado Northwestern Community College Spartans. The match is scheduled for Friday, September 18 at 6:00 pm from the Bunnell-Dmitrich Athletic Center.
