CHENEY, Wash. — Eastern Washington fell to Idaho State in straight sets (20-25, 17-25, 12-25), with the Bengals pulling away late in each frame to secure the sweep.
Aspyn Reed paced the Eagles with 10 kills on a .200 hitting percentage, adding six digs and two solo blocks.
Kalista Lukovich finished with five kills and eight digs, while
Carlyn Rapozo-Kamoku added five kills, five digs, an ace and a solo block.
Elle Bruegman anchored the back row with a match-high 17 digs, while
Jailyn Davenport recorded 13 assists and nine digs.
"We knew that was going to be a tough challenge," head coach
Jon Haruguchi said. "Unfortunately, I don't think we played to our standards, and that showed. We can't dwell on this one. We have to get ready for the next one. We learned some valuable lessons today, and we'll take those into training."
Idaho State took the opening set 25-20 after Eastern battled back from an early deficit. The Bengals built a 13-8 advantage before the Eagles responded with a 6-1 run. Bruegman delivered an ace, Rapozo-Kamoku added a solo block and kills from Lukovich and Rapozo-Kamoku pulled Eastern even at 14-14.
Eastern eventually moved ahead 17-16 and remained even at 18 before Idaho State scored five straight points to create separation. Reed provided a pair of late kills, but the Bengals closed out the frame.
"I think we were hesitant. We were tight and didn't want to make mistakes, and that's typically when mistakes happen," Haruguchi said. "We need to learn how to play through that."
The second set remained tight early, with Rapozo-Kamoku sparking a 4-0 run with a kill and service ace to give Eastern an 8-7 advantage. The Eagles later moved ahead 11-10 before Idaho State responded with seven consecutive points. Gray and Reed helped Eastern battle back, but the Bengals maintained control to take the set 25-17.
Idaho State carried its momentum into the third, building a 13-6 advantage. Trailing 19-8, Eastern made a final push as Reed recorded a kill and solo block before
Makena Gamby capped a four-point run with an ace. The Bengals responded with the final six points to secure the 25-12 win.
Haruguchi credited Reed's recent production to her growing comfort in Eastern's system.
"She's been working really hard in practice and trusted the process, trusted her training, this program and the coaches," Haruguchi said. "Now it's awesome to see that starting to show."
For Lukovich, the focus quickly shifted toward responding in practice.
"I know this isn't who I am. I can do much better than this," Lukovich said. "I think this next week in practice, I'll have a big fire lit inside of me."
Up Next
The Eagles hit the road to take on rivalry week as they head to Montana to take on UM on Thursday, Oct. 1 at 6 p.m., PST in Missoula. Then they head to Bozeman to face off against Montana State on Saturday, Oct. 3 at 1 p.m., PST.
ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.
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