BOISE, Idaho — For the second time in as many days, Saint Mary's Volleyball took on Boise State at their place, with this one wrapping up the opening weekend of the season. The Gaels were blanked in the season opener on Friday, but they got things rolling early, taking the first set from the Broncos to quiet the home crowd. Boise State rebounded nicely, however, and was able to put away Saint Mary's with finals of 25-20, 16-25, 20-25, and 17-25.
 
EXORCISING DEMONS
The Gaels put away their three-set loss from Friday afternoon very quickly on Saturday, as the Gaels were the sharper team in the opening stanza. They turned in their best performance in terms of hitting percentage in a set, with a .244 hitting percentage in the set, and got six kills apiece from Hawley Harrer and Kjersti Strong. The start to the match was about as good as it gets too, with SMC scoring eight of the first nine points. Harrer had two of those kills, and Strong had three, with Makenna Joyce adding the first ace of the match. This opening run was more than enough to buoy Saint Mary's to a 25-20 win in the first set, their first set win of the season.
 
ANOTHER NEAR COMEBACK
Much like how the third set went on Friday, the Gaels almost turned in an all-time comeback in the third set on Saturday. Saint Mary's fell behind early and that deficit continued to grow, eventually ballooning to 18-7 in favor of the home team. That's when Saint Mary's dug deep and put a scare into the fans inside Bronco Gym. SMC got seven of the next eight points to turn an 11-point deficit into a 19-14 score. Genevieve Bane got rolling during this run with three kills, and Ella Sandt picked up an ace at the line. They would eventually close to within four, with the score standing at 23-19, but Boise State traded the final points with the Gaels to close out the third set.
 
THE FINAL STATS
Bane was the team's leading attacker in her best game at the collegiate level, recording 12 kills in just her second match…Bane also added seven digs, two aces, and two blocks…Harrer matched her with 12 kills, but had just two errors and tied for the team lead with three blocks…the Gaels as a team racked up eight aces and just five errors, a much improved day at the service line…Sandt picked up a double-double with 21 assists and 12 digs, and Hailee Garcia notched her first as well with 16 assists and 11 digs…the Gaels were out-blocked 12-5 on Saturday, a shift from the opening match.

QUOTABLE
"Much improved performance for our team today. We came out determined and played really well. Unfortunately, we were not able to sustain it. Boise State is going to do very well this season. It was a great opportunity for us to get better and I think we got quite a bit better. We're looking forward to the week ahead." - head coach, Rob Browning
 
UP NEXT
The Gaels return to California and will prepare for their 2022 home opener, which takes place on Wednesday, August 31 against Sacramento State. First serve is scheduled for 7:00 pm inside University Credit Union Pavilion. The Gaels will be at home four of their next six matches, which will close out non-conference play.
 
#GaelsRise — Don't miss out on the first home match of the season for Saint Mary's Volleyball! The Gaels host their home opener on Wednesday, August 31 against Sacramento State at 7:00 pm. Tickets are on sale NOW!