Broncos sweep Wyoming, clinch berth into MW tournament

Thursday, November 18

Boise, Idaho

7 p.m. MT

Boise State

21-9,10-7Mountain West

Wyoming

16-13,8-9Mountain West

Wyoming

Boise St.

Photo by: Boise State University

Broncos sweep Wyoming, clinch berth into MW tournament

11/18/2021 9:47:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Box Score (pdf)

Boise State swept the Cowgirls for the second time this season to earn a berth into next week’s Mountain West Championship at Las Vegas.

By: Courtesy: Boise State Athletics

BOISE, Idaho - Boise State volleyball earned its 11th sweep of the season as the Broncos defeated Wyoming 3-0 Thursday night in Bronco Gym. The Mountain West Conference victory over the Cowgirls also clinched the Broncos a spot in next week's championship tournament at Las Vegas as one of the six teams to advance.

Boise State out hit Wyoming .265 percent to .112 percent on the night and recorded 15 blocks on its way to a convincing win in the second to last match of the regular season. The 25-21, 25-19, 25-14 victory improved the Broncos to 21-9 overall and 10-7 in conference play. Wyoming fell to 16-13 overall and 8-9 in league.

"I was really happy with the play of both Paige Bartsch and Alli O'Hara," said Boise State head coach Shawn Garus. "They played hard and with a lot of energy, which the team fed off. Everyone on the court tonight in this big match played focused, together and with a lot of emotion. This was a really big win for this group of kids and I couldn't be happier for them."

Bartsch, a freshman middle blocker turned rightside hitter, led the Blue and Orange with a team-high 13.5 points on 10 kills and career-high seven block assists. She hit .333 percent and was the only Bronco to reach double-digit kills.

Lauren Ohlinger finished with 13 points on nine kills, one service ace, two block solos and two block assists. She also had nine digs.

Rounding out the Broncos offensively were Alyssa Wissinger who hit .429 percent and tallied 10 points on seven kills and six blocks. Jordan Miller matched Wissinger's kill total and added a block assist. Meanwhile, Alli O'Hara hit a team-high .455 percent for five kills and tied Bartsch for the high in blocks with seven.

Danielle Boss was the lone Bronco to record a double-double finishing with 32 assists and 13 digs, both team highs.

The Broncos never trailed in the opening period, but were tied twice with the Cowgirls early. With the score even at 5-5, Boise State went on a 4-1 run — powered by a O'Harra kill and a block — to take the lead for good. The Blue and Orange stretched its advantage to five points on a couple of occasions before winning the set by four.

The second set was a battle with 11 ties and four lead changes. With Wyoming up two at 17-15, Boise State called timeout. The Broncos then came out onto the floor and rolled off a 7-0 run to turn the two-point deficit into a 22-17 lead, then stretched the run to 10-2 to close it out 25-19.

The final set saw the Cowgirls take the lead early and led 6-5 when the Broncos surged. Boise State went on a 7-1 run to go up 12-7 and never looked back. During the run, Miller had two kills and one block assists while O'Harra had two block assists. The Broncos eventually claim the set by 11 points to clinch the match victory.

Boise State will close out the 2021 regular season this Saturday when league leading Colorado State comes to town for the Broncos' Senior Day with first serve scheduled for approximately 12 p.m. (Mountain).

Notables

Boise State has now won six of its last seven matches.
The Broncos victory over Wyoming evened the overall series up at 16 wins each, it also extended Boise State's lead in matches played at Boise to 10-3 and in the conference series to 12-9.
Boise State reached 300 team blocks on the season with 15 against the Cowgirls to give them 312.5, it is only the third time in the rally scoring era (2001-present) that a Boise State team has recorded 300 blocks — the 10th time overall dating back to 1980.
The 312.5 blocks are also the second most recorded during the rally scoring era behind the 328 tallied by the 2019 team.
Boise State moved into first place in the NCAA for team blocks with 312.5 passing up Maryland who was idle tonight with 301.5.
Dani Boss' double-double was her 13th of the season and 37th of her career, both team highs.
Lauren Ohlinger's service ace gives her 48 on the season. She entered the night ranked 12th nationally and second in the MW.
Alyssa Wissinger's six blocks versus the Cowgirls gives her 134 this season, she entered the night ranked first in the league and 15th nationally.
Boss' 32 assists against Wyoming gives her 996 on the year, four short of 1,000.