Huskies Outlast Jaguars For 3-0 Start

Sunday, August 30

Seattle, Wash.

3:00 PM

University of Washington

3-0,0-0Big Ten

IU Indianapolis

1-2,0-0Horizon

Team	1	2	3	4	5	Final F
IU Indy	16	25	12	25	9	2
Washington	25	23	25	22	15	3

Kylie Kleckner celebrating a point by Maija Howse

August 30, 2026 | Volleyball

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By: UW Athletic Communications

SEATTLE – UW Volleyball passed its toughest test of the 2026 opening weekend today, outlasting visiting IU Indianapolis in a back-and-forth five setter in front of 2,139 fans at Alaska Airlines Arena. The Huskies won the Husky Invitational, starting the year with a 3-0 record.

Washington never trailed and won two sets going away, but the Jaguars had two tight set wins to force a fifth, but the Dawgs had some of their best play when it mattered to wrap up a 25-16, 23-25, 25-12, 22-25, 15-9 win.

First-year Husky Kylie Kleckner earned tournament MVP honors after her first week of NCAA action, and was joined on the All-Tournament Team by second-year outsides Simona Mateska and Maija Howse.

Washington finished the night with 54 kills and a .248 attack percentage. The Huskies also found momentum through multiple back-to-back plays from second-year Simona Mateska, second-year Kylie Kleckner, first-year Sammy Destler, and second-year Andrea Fabikovicová.

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SMASH ??#PointHuskies // ?? B1G+ pic.twitter.com/XDvbRqPvwT
— Washington Volleyball (@UWVolleyball) August 30, 2026

Outside hitter Kylie Kleckner led the Huskies with 15 kills while hitting .282 and added seven digs, while second-year Maija Howse followed with 14 kills on a .367 clip and seven total blocks. Simona Mateska recorded nine kills, three aces and nine digs, with her several back-to-back plays.

Third-year transfer Addie Kanouff checked in with some instant offense, contributing four kills in three sets. Fabikovicová finished with 33 assists, four aces and 10 digs for a strong all-around performance. First-year Lily Mae Buerkle recorded six assists, one ace and four digs. Defensively, first-year Kaitlyn Nguyen and Fabikovicová each recorded 10 digs, helping Washington finish with 45 digs and 12 total team blocks. The Huskies saved their strongest offensive performance for the deciding fifth set, recording 10 kills on 19 attacks with just one error to hit .474 and close out the match, 15-9.

The Huskies quickly built a 5-1 lead in set one after an early service error from the Jaguars and an ace from Simona Mateska on the first ball of the set. Kylie Kleckner continued to make an impact offensively with back-to-back kills to push Washington ahead 6-1, while a Hunt and Andrea Fabikovicová block extended the lead to 9-2. Washington protected its advantage with a Hunt and Kleckner block putting the Huskies up 19-10, followed by a strong serve receive from Mateska that set up another Kleckner kill for a 20-12 lead. Nguyen led the Huskies defense with several key digs and assists, allowing Kleckner to get her fifth kill on six swings, giving Washington a 23-15 advantage. An ace by Hunt brought the Huskies to set point at 24-15 before Sammy Destler entered the match and immediately delivered a kill to close out the 25-16 first-set victory.

Addie Kanouff and Lily Mae Buerkle check in and connect on their first play! ????#PointHuskies // @BigTenPlus pic.twitter.com/norQRxfEB8
— Washington Volleyball (@UWVolleyball) August 30, 2026

The second set opened with Washington once again applying pressure early, as Sammy Destler delivered back-to-back kills to give the Huskies a 2-0 lead. Maija Howse followed with another kill, extending the run to three straight points before Andrea Fabikovicová added back-to-back aces to put Washington ahead 5-0. The Jaguars responded and began to chip away at the lead, but Howse came through with a kill to win the ball back at 7-5, followed by a Fabikovicová kill that kept the Huskies in front, 10-8. The set remained a back and forth battle throughout, with Kylie Kleckner adding a back-row kill to make it 11-10 and another kill later giving Washington a 16-15 advantage. The Jaguars eventually pulled ahead 22-19, but Simona Mateska answered with a kill to bring the Huskies within two at 22-20. After the Jaguars regained the lead, Mateska again delivered a kill to win back the ball at 23-21. Howse followed with a kill to bring Washington to within one at 24-22, but the Jaguars closed out the set, 25-23, on a hit off the block to even out the match.

The Huskies responded strongly in the third set, siding out on an early point from the Jaguars with a Howse kill to get the ball back and establish a 5-3 lead. As the jaguars tied the set, Addie Kanouff and Lily Mae Buerkle entered the match. Making her season debut, Buerkle quickly connected with Kanouff for a kill to put the Huskies back in front, 7-6. Wessels added a block to tie the set at 8-8 before a Howse block to give Washington a 12-8 advantage. Fabikovicová followed with an ace, while Mateska added a kill to push the Huskies ahead 15-8. Washington continued to get ahead as Wessels and Howse combined for another block, extending the lead to 17-8. After a defensive rally, Howse came through with another kill to make it 20-10, and Kleckner followed with a kill to put Washington at set point, 24-11. The Jaguars got the ball back, but a Jaguar error gave the Huskies the final point, closing out the third set, 25-12.

The fourth set saw the Jaguars find their momentum again, turning the game into another back and forth battle from the start. After the Jaguars took the opening point, Mateska answered with a kill to tie the set at 1-1 before Washington built a 5-3 lead. Kanouff then added a kill, Kleckner followed with an ace, and Hunt delivered a kill to push the Huskies ahead 10-8. Wessels took the lead further with a kill for a 12-10 lead, but the Jaguars fought back to tie the set at 12-12 and then take the lead. Howse responded with a kill to even the score at 14-14, and a Jaguar error gave Washington the lead back before Kleckner added another kill to make it 16-15. The Jaguars again answered, taking a 17-16 lead, but Kanouff came through with a kill down the line to tie the set at 17-17. After the Jaguars moved back in front, Kanouff delivered again with a kill to even the score at 18-18. Howse continued to keep Washington within reach, tying the set at 20-20 with a kill before her roof put the Huskies ahead 21-20. The Jaguars responded reaching set point at 24-22 before closing out the set, 25-22, to force a fifth set.

The Jaguars scored quickly in the fifth set, but a Howse kill tied the score at 1-1. Hunt then made her presence felt at the net with a kill and a block to help Washington build a 5-2 lead, before Howse added another kill off the block to push the advantage to 7-3. Mateska continued to fuel the Huskies' offense with back-to-back kills, putting Washington ahead 11-6, then added another kill to win the ball back and make it 12-7. The Huskies found their way to the set point with a Howse kill to put the Huskies at 14-9. Washington closed out the deciding set, 15-9, completing the battle.

Up Next: The Huskies take to the road for the first time next week, going to Norman, Okla. for the Allstate SEC/Big Ten Challenge, where UW will take on Ole Miss on Thursday, Sept. 3, and then square off against Oklahoma on Friday, Sept. 4.

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