Entering Saturday’s contest, the Fresno State women’s volleyball team was alone in second place behind the undefeated Colorado State Rams. The third-place team: the Utah State Aggies.

Three sets later, the Bulldogs and Aggies share second place.

In a rematch of the Sept. 26 matchup that saw Fresno State win 3-1, the Aggies showed improvement and swept the visiting Bulldogs.

After posting a .300 hitting percentage or better in four of their last six games, the Bulldogs only hit .083, their lowest of the season. In contrast, the Aggies hit .232, led by junior middle blocker Kaitlin VanHoff’s school-record .818 (nine kills out of 11 total attacks). Junior outside hitter Ra-chel Orr led Utah State in kills (15).

“Utah State played well, but we did little to take them out of rhythm,” said Fresno State coach Lauren Netherby-Sewell. “We didn’t create much energy, and our poor play defensively gave a good team extra momentum early.”

Senior outside hitter Marissa Brand was the only Bulldog to reach double-digits in kills (13) and finished the contest with a team-leading .278 hitting percentage.

It was a game that Utah State (18-9, 11-5 Mountain West Conference) had control of from start to finish. In Set 1, the Aggies jumped to a 7-0 lead through six consecutive Fresno State attack errors. The Bulldogs (17-11, 11-5 MWC) regained their composure afterward and were able to cut their deficit, but were outscored 11-5 to end the frame.

Set 2 saw another quick start by the Aggies for a 7-3 lead. The Bulldogs were able to take ad-vantage of offensive miscues by Utah State to tie at 12, but the home team was able to pull away and go on a 13-6 run for the 25-18 set victory.

After the intermission, the Bulldogs began in the driver’s seat with a 3-0 lead, but Utah State stayed close behind and knotted the match at 11. The Aggies took advantage of Fresno State’s offensive woes and led 20-16 before going with a 5-1 finish to win the game.

The Bulldogs will host the Wyoming Cowboys (17-13, 7-9 MWC) on Thursday at 7 p.m.