Utes avenge loss against rival Cougars

“That was fun!”

That simple exclamation by University of Utah volleyball coach Beth Launiere pretty succinctly summed up Friday night’s rivalry match between the No. 23-ranked Utah Utes and the No. 21-ranked BYU Cougars.

At least for the host Utes.

In the second meeting this season between the in-state rivals, in front of a record 5,000-plus crowd in the Huntsman Center, Utah was far and away the better team.

Utah won 3 sets to 0 in what was its first win at home against BYU since 2010. The victory also snapped a five-game losing streak against the Cougars.

When all was said and done, it wasn’t a particularly competitive match, with Utah winning 25-16, 25-15, 25-16.

The Utes were better, set-to-set, at nearly everything. Better at kills, assists, service aces, blocks, hitting percentage, point scoring percentage and sideout percentage.

You name it, and the Utes probably did it better than the Cougars on Friday.

It was something of a dominant showing really, only a few weeks — four matches — removed from a BYU win against Utah (in five sets) in Provo.

What changed over the last couple of weeks?

“We are at the point in the season where we are trying to work on the things that get us in trouble,” Launiere said. “A lot of big things have been working for us, so we are just trying to get a little bit better at some of the smaller things.”

Two of those “smaller things” were particularly instrumental in the Utes’ victory. Net play was one. Lack of errors the other.

From the outset, Utah controlled the net, which was something of a surprise given BYU entered the match leading the Big 12 in total blocks this season, with the Cougars also second in the league in blocks per set.

BYU was without its top outside hitter in Claire Little, who missed the match with illness. Her absence necessitated big minutes from freshman Elli Mortensen, who had her good and bad moments.

But even when things went well for Mortensen and the Cougars, it was the Utes who were consistently thriving at the net.

“I thought we controlled the net well,” Launiere said. “We’ve been working really hard on our middles, especially, going up and contesting.”

And when Utah wasn’t affecting BYU at the net, the Utes were registering kill after kill after kill, led by Kamryn Gibadlo.

The sophomore was electric throughout the competition and finished with a game-high 15 kills, made all the more impressive by a hitting percentage of .517. When she got the chance, more often than not Gibadlo made good on it.

She credited some of that to the rivalry itself.

“When we played them and we lost, it was such a tough feeling losing to a rival like that, so we were all just so pumped up for this game and I honestly knew coming into it that we were going to get it done. I was so confident,” Gibadlo said.

It helps that Gibadlo has worked especially hard this season to become a more versatile attacker.

“The biggest thing we’ve been working on is mixing up shots,” she said. “… I’ve been focusing on that.”

It paid off against the Cougars.

“It has really been quite extraordinary watching Gibby’s progression as an attacker,” Launiere said. “Last year and early in the season she was just a cross court hitter.

“She just continues to add different shots, and she is getting tough to stop. When you take something away she has something else, and that is what great hitters do.”

Arguably as important to the Utes’ victory though was the lack of errors.

Where BYU finished with a combined 25 service or service reception errors, Utah was remarkably clean overall, with just 12 errors combined.

Call it composure, home court advantage, whatever really. Utah was the more poised team throughout.

“We played as clean of volleyball as we have all season,” Launiere said. “We made very few errors. That is what we were trying to strive for, to put together a match where we were efficient and keep the errors down, and that was our best serving match of the season. From an attacking standpoint, low error. We just played really good volleyball.”

Making that all the better was the record-setting crowd, for which Launiere went out of her way to thank university administration for getting out to the match.

“I’m so appreciative of that,” she said, “and this team deserved it because they are putting together a great season.”

BYU, meanwhile, was well aware of its need to play better. Against the Utes sure, but also going forward for the remainder of the season.

“We needed to serve and pass better and get more kills,” BYU coach Heather Olmstead said. “We just have to keep getting better at volleyball and building our skills.”

For Utah, the win teased some of its long term potential, both in the upcoming postseason and in future seasons. At 19-5 overall and 9-4 in Big 12 play right now, the Utes are in the upper tier in the league, but they want more.

“It is such a good team win,” Olsen said. “It kind of makes me hungry for more. We really came together and played true Utah volleyball that we have been striving for, which makes me hungry for more in the upcoming games.”