Sunday, September 6
Salt Lake City, UT
4:00 PM
University of Utah
4-2,0-0Big 12
1
vs
3
Pittsburgh
6-0,0-0ACC
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pittsburgh | 15 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
| Utah | 25 | 21 | 21 | 9 | 1 |
Photo by: Emma Corona/Utah Athletics
Utah Volleyball Comes Up Short to No. 2 Pittsburgh
9/6/2026 6:49 PM | Volleyball
Utes take first set over Panthers but can’t keep momentum
SALT LAKE CITY– Utah Volleyball came up short against No. 2 Pittsburgh (25-15, 21-25, 21-25, 9-25) after taking the first set but couldn't keep the momentum for a win.
"I think it shows our upside is good enough to compete with anybody in the country," head coach Alyssa D'Errico said of the first three sets of the match. "I told the team that in the preseason—I truly believe us against anybody across the net, I think we can go toe-to-toe with any of the big dogs. The biggest differentiator for us that we got to continue to grow in is keeping the pressure on an opponent. Pitt is so good in bad situations. Their attackers are still swinging at every ball, their second touch still gets them up to the net every ball. It is just hard to sustain the pressure they put on you. How do we sustain pressure through bad situations so that we can stay in a match like that."
SET ONE
Utah put points on the board first against Pitt off three attack errors from the Panthers, and followed up with an ace from Isabella Mogridge, 4-0. Isabelle Marco added an ace of her own as the Utes raced to an 8-4 lead before Pitt called timeout.
The Utes continued to apply pressure with Kamryn Gibadlo and Katelynn Field teaming up for the block to bring up the technical timeout, 15-8.
Devyn Wiest put extra smack on her kill that gave the Utes a 20-11 advantage over the Panthers before Loryn Helgesen followed up with a kill of her own to make it a 21-12 affair.
Utah continued to roll in set one with Princess Atamah getting in on the kill action, lifting the Utes, 22-13. Ashley West gave Utah set point, 24-15, setting up Gibadlo for the final blow kill for the 25-15 first set win.
SET TWO
Round two started with a long rally before Field dumped the ball for the first kill of the set. Pitt answered three in a row after that to make it a 3-1 early advantage in its favor.
Utah tied the match up at 7 following a Wiest ace, Atamah kill, and Field/West block combo, but the Panthers responded with four unanswered points, 11-7.
Pittsburgh went into the technical timeout leading 15-9 over the Utes.
The Utes got within three of Pitt, 23-20, before the Panthers hit set point and took set two, 25-21.
SET THREE
The Panthers jumped out quickly in set three, but the Utes answered back just as quick taking a 4-3 early lead.
Set three remained tight with Helgesen tying the set up at 9, following the effort up with a partnered block with Field to take a 10-9 lead. A few plays later, a kill West got the Utes to a 15-13 advantage at the halfway point of the set.
Atamah got the Utes within one of Pitt, 20-19 and did it one more time to make it a 21-20 set down the stretch. The Panthers reached set point off a service error from Utah and eventually took the set off a Utes attack error, 25-21.
SET FOUR
Pitt jumped out to a 4-0 advantage until Gibadlo put the Utes on the board with a kill, 4-1. The Panthers rattled off three more unanswered points before a Helgesen kill made it a 7-2 game.
Utah took a timeout to regroup once Pittsburgh gained an 11-2 lead near the halfway point of the set. Levani Falatea immediately registered a kill out of the break, making it 11-3.
Wiest logged back-to-back aces making it a 19-7 set in favor of Pitt. The Panthers hit match point shortly after, taking the set 25-9, and winning the match, 3-1.
STANDOUT STATS
UP NEXT
Utah hits the road, going to Logan, Utah to take on Utah State on Friday, Sep. 11 at 7 p.m. MT.
The Utes then head home to the Huntsman Center on Sunday, Sep. 13 to host UCLA at 6 p.m. MT in and ESPN broadcast.
Fans can check out the full 2026 slate here.
Single game and season tickets for Utah Volleyball's 2026 season are available for purchase.
FOLLOW THE UTES
For an inside look at the Utah Volleyball program, fans can follow the Utes on social media (X: @UtahVolleyball | Instagram: @utahvolleyball).
DOWNLOAD THE OFFICIAL MOBILE APP OF THE UNIVERSITY OF UTAH TODAY – UTAH 360
"I think it shows our upside is good enough to compete with anybody in the country," head coach Alyssa D'Errico said of the first three sets of the match. "I told the team that in the preseason—I truly believe us against anybody across the net, I think we can go toe-to-toe with any of the big dogs. The biggest differentiator for us that we got to continue to grow in is keeping the pressure on an opponent. Pitt is so good in bad situations. Their attackers are still swinging at every ball, their second touch still gets them up to the net every ball. It is just hard to sustain the pressure they put on you. How do we sustain pressure through bad situations so that we can stay in a match like that."
Final Score.
— Utah Volleyball (@UtahVolleyball) September 7, 2026
Thank you to our wonderful fans coming out to support this evening ??
See you all NEXT SUNDAY versus UCLA at home!#GoUtes pic.twitter.com/Lp53PombOH
SET ONE
Utah put points on the board first against Pitt off three attack errors from the Panthers, and followed up with an ace from Isabella Mogridge, 4-0. Isabelle Marco added an ace of her own as the Utes raced to an 8-4 lead before Pitt called timeout.
The Utes continued to apply pressure with Kamryn Gibadlo and Katelynn Field teaming up for the block to bring up the technical timeout, 15-8.
Devyn Wiest put extra smack on her kill that gave the Utes a 20-11 advantage over the Panthers before Loryn Helgesen followed up with a kill of her own to make it a 21-12 affair.
Utah continued to roll in set one with Princess Atamah getting in on the kill action, lifting the Utes, 22-13. Ashley West gave Utah set point, 24-15, setting up Gibadlo for the final blow kill for the 25-15 first set win.
SET TWO
Round two started with a long rally before Field dumped the ball for the first kill of the set. Pitt answered three in a row after that to make it a 3-1 early advantage in its favor.
Utah tied the match up at 7 following a Wiest ace, Atamah kill, and Field/West block combo, but the Panthers responded with four unanswered points, 11-7.
Pittsburgh went into the technical timeout leading 15-9 over the Utes.
The Utes got within three of Pitt, 23-20, before the Panthers hit set point and took set two, 25-21.
SET THREE
The Panthers jumped out quickly in set three, but the Utes answered back just as quick taking a 4-3 early lead.
Set three remained tight with Helgesen tying the set up at 9, following the effort up with a partnered block with Field to take a 10-9 lead. A few plays later, a kill West got the Utes to a 15-13 advantage at the halfway point of the set.
Atamah got the Utes within one of Pitt, 20-19 and did it one more time to make it a 21-20 set down the stretch. The Panthers reached set point off a service error from Utah and eventually took the set off a Utes attack error, 25-21.
SET FOUR
Pitt jumped out to a 4-0 advantage until Gibadlo put the Utes on the board with a kill, 4-1. The Panthers rattled off three more unanswered points before a Helgesen kill made it a 7-2 game.
Utah took a timeout to regroup once Pittsburgh gained an 11-2 lead near the halfway point of the set. Levani Falatea immediately registered a kill out of the break, making it 11-3.
Wiest logged back-to-back aces making it a 19-7 set in favor of Pitt. The Panthers hit match point shortly after, taking the set 25-9, and winning the match, 3-1.
STANDOUT STATS
- The Utes led the Panthers in kills, 51-47 and held Pitt below its average hitting percentage (.280) at .275
- Gibadlo led Utah in kills (15), Helgesen was second (12)
- Atamah had a career night with 6 kills and a .556 hitting percentage
- Wiest posted a career-high aces (3) as did Mogridge (2)
- Sierra Grizzle led the Utes in digs (18) and Field led in blocks (5)
UP NEXT
Utah hits the road, going to Logan, Utah to take on Utah State on Friday, Sep. 11 at 7 p.m. MT.
The Utes then head home to the Huntsman Center on Sunday, Sep. 13 to host UCLA at 6 p.m. MT in and ESPN broadcast.
Fans can check out the full 2026 slate here.
Single game and season tickets for Utah Volleyball's 2026 season are available for purchase.
FOLLOW THE UTES
For an inside look at the Utah Volleyball program, fans can follow the Utes on social media (X: @UtahVolleyball | Instagram: @utahvolleyball).
DOWNLOAD THE OFFICIAL MOBILE APP OF THE UNIVERSITY OF UTAH TODAY – UTAH 360
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
MB
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
L
/ Volleyball
OPP
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
OH/RS
/ Volleyball
OH
/ VolleyballTeam Stats
UP
Utah
Kills
47
51
Errors
14
24
Attempts
120
139
Hitting %
.275
.194
Points
63.0
66.0
Assists
43
50
Aces
4
7
Blocks
12
8
Game Leaders
Kills
15
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
12
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Kills
8
Aces
3
Blocks
0
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
2
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