The Fresno State volleyball team (5-4) left the Save Mart Center with a 1-2 record in its only home tournament of the season.

Fresno State lost in five sets to Sacramento State (4-5) on Friday, swept tournament champion UC Davis (4-5) in Saturday’s early game, and lost in a competitive five sets to Utah Valley in its final match of the tournament.

After starting the season with second-place finishes in two tournaments, the Bulldogs played at home for the first time. No team went undefeated in the tournament.

“This is one of those weekends where we learned tough lessons,” coach Lauren Netherby-Sewell said.

“If it’s going to happen, now is a good time, even though we really didn’t want it to happen at home.”

After Fresno State won 25-20 against Utah Valley (4-4), Fresno State started its second set in solid fashion with support from middle blockers Lauren Albertson and Maci Murdock.

Albertson blocked two early Utah Valley attacks. Murdock netted two second-set kills to push the Bulldogs to a 7-2 lead in their eventual 25-18 win. Both players combined for 21 kills in the tournament.

“We were trying to get as many sets to them as possible,” Netherby-Sewell said.­­ ­“Utah Valley couldn’t seem to stop them until late in the fifth set. When we’re passing well, we’re very difficult to defend because we have middles that can hit.”

After Fresno State won the third set 25-15, Utah Valley seemed to regain the offensive rhythm it had in its first set. Powered by outside hitter McKenna Tait’s team-high 17 kills, Utah Valley scored seven unanswered en route to a 22-13 lead.

A 25-17 fourth-set win for Utah Valley forced the game to a fifth and final set.

It was a set that Fresno State, at one point, trailed 10-2. Despite a late Bulldogs rally to close to within three points, Utah Valley won the set 15-11.

“We saw a few changes, but we were just not sticking to our game plan. We were all over the place,” Murdock said. “I think it’s a good learning lesson for us.”

The Bulldogs demonstrated stout offensive and defensive play in their final tournament match. Four players finished with double-digit kills. Five finished with double-digit digs.

But, despite all the overall solidarity with its serve-and-pass game, Fresno State had untimely woes.

The Bulldogs recorded 13 serving errors in the five-set loss. One error came in the pivotal fifth set that helped Utah Valley score its 12th point.

“We just couldn’t get our serve-and-pass game going, and our confidence was pretty low,” Netherby-Sewell said. “We just looked like a different team this weekend. It’s a lesson. We’ll figure it out and come back better next week.”

Senior setter Barbara Alcantara was the sole Bulldog to earn all-tournament honors. Alcantara logged 56 assists and 14 digs in her final tournament match.

“I thought she played consistently,” Netherby-Sewell said. “She gave us stability and tried to get this team going when things weren’t going well. She was our best, most solid leader throughout the weekend.”

Fresno State will travel to Southern California this weekend to participate in the University of San Diego Invitational, its final non-conference tournament of the season.

The Bulldogs will debut in the Mountain West on Sept. 20 at Boise State.

“We didn’t play with the intensity that we played with in the past two weekends,” Alcantara said.

“We still have another tournament next weekend, and it’s going to be another lesson for us. We’re just going to keep working on our fundamentals.”