The intensity was prominent in Pocatello on Thursday night, as Eastern Washington volleyball battled Idaho State. Despite a determined effort, Eastern dropped the game against the Bengals, 0-3[25-27, 21-25, 25-27]. Eastern Washington now falls to 4-7 in conference and 9-14 overall this season. Idaho St. improves to 4-7 in conference and 12-12 overall. The Eagles had 46 kills to the Bengals' 44 but had 23 errors to ISU's 16.

"It was a tough night for us. We had a hard time generating a flow and that hurt us, especially at the end of game," head coach Jon Haruguchi. "I was pleased with how scrappy we played on defense and how we kept it close. But in the end, it just wasn't our night. We need to hit the reset button and get ready for the next one on Saturday."
 
Eastern had the early lead in the opening set, getting out to a 7-4 advantage behind a pair of Sage Brustad kills. ISU would get the set back in control, tying it at 10. The Eagles again created separation with a 14-11 lead as Renata Lopez Morales foundthe lanes down the middle to attack. The Bengals responded, organizing a 5-2 stretch to tie the set up. It was a race to the finish now, as the teams' traded points. Eastern was up 22-20 on a kill from Alyssa Radke, but ISU would bring the score even again at 23. The set then tied at 25, before two points from the Bengals to give them the 1-0 lead in the game.

The 27-25 first set win came behind .294 hitting from the Bengals, with Eastern hitting .231.

Down one set, Eastern moved to tie the game up in the second, with Lopez Morales and Radke providing the early offense. The set was no less competitive than the first, as both teams piled up kills and the score was tied eight times by the halfway point. After the score was tied at 15, the Bengals used a 4-1 run to separate from the Eagles. The run proved crucial for ISU, and they would win the set 25-21 to take a 2-0 advantage in the game.

Eastern hit .147 in the second set and the Bengals cooled off to a .231 percentage.

In the third set, separation was again difficult to establish for both teams. The Eagles and Bengals tied eight times by the time Eastern reached a 10-9 lead. With the lead, Eastern found its separation, going on a 4-2 run. Radke continued to deliver precise and overpowering attacks to build the Eagles' lead. The advantage was short-lived as the Bengals reversed the momentum and charged ahead with a 5-0 run for a 17-16 lead. Eastern fought back with Brustad finding the lanes to get her attacks to fall. The Bengals continued to respond kill-for-kill. Up 24-21, ISU appeared ready to clinch the game, but Eastern pushed for one more run. The Eagles charged with their own 5-0 spurt with Brustad providing two kills and Lopez Morales dropping in an ace. ISU denied the set point from Eastern and the set was tied again. The Bengals then scored the next two points to grab a 27-25 win in the third set and a 3-0 sweep in the game. For the set, Eastern hit .200 and ISU hit .231.

Eastern recorded a .195 attack percentage in the game, while Idaho St. finished with a .250 percentage.

Key Statistics
Each set had at least 10 ties, with 34 total for the game. The third set featured 14 total ties. There were 13 lead changes in the game.

Alyssa Radke earned a game-high 16 kills on 36 total attacks, finishing with a .278 attack percentage. The game is Radke's third-straight with 15 or more kills.

Sage Brustad recorded 13 kills on 38 total attacks. Brustad now has double digit kills in 16 of the team's 23 games.

Idaho State did not have a player in double figures for kills, but six players had five or more.

Eastern had four service aces and seven errors. The Bengals had four aces and four errors.

Lindsey Russell had 41 assists and now has 10 games with 40 or more assists.

Renata Lopez Morales had six kills on eight attacks for a .750 attack percentage. The senior also led the team with three block assists.

Up Next
Eastern Washington will be back on the court on Saturday night(Nov. 5) when they play Weber State in Ogden, Utah at 6 p.m. Pacific Time.