Gophers volleyball beats Utah State to advance in NCAA Tournament

The Gophers will play No. 3 Creighton on Saturday night.

University of Minnesota Athletics

The Minnesota Golden Gophers advanced in the NCAA Volleyball Tournament, using 12 blocks to sweep Utah State in a first-round matchup on Friday night.

The Gophers took control early in the first set, with an 8-2 run helping them take a 14-7 lead. The Aggies went on a 6-1 run to cut the lead down to 15-13 but Minnesota regained control to pick up a 25-17 victory.

The second set was a familiar script for the Gophers, jumping out to an 8-2 lead and running their advantage to 13-4. Minnesota led by as many as 12 points late in the set and came away with a 25-14 win to push the Aggies to the brink of elimination.

Utah State showed some fight in the third set, scoring four straight points to break away from a 14-14 deadlock and hold a 22-17 lead, but the Gophers scored eight of the final nine points to earn a 25-23 victory and punch their ticket to the second round.

Lydia Grote led the Gophers with 10 kills while Mckenna Wucherer had eight kills and Taylor Landfair had seven kills. Landfair also had a team-high three aces while Kylie Murr and Melani Shaffmaster had two kills each.

Phoebe Awoleye and Arica Davis tied for the team lead with six blocks each while Shaffmaster had 19 assists. Murr also had 17 digs and seven assists for the Gophers.

Shelby Capllonch led the Aggies with 12 kills while Jordia Hodaway, Beatriz Rodrigues and Leah Wilton-LaBoy had one ace each. Kelsey Watson had five blocks, Rodrigues had 15 assists and Shelby Capllonch had 10 digs.

The Gophers will look to continue their tournament run when they face Creighton in Omaha at 6:30 on Saturday night on ESPN+.