By Scott Hanson

The Seattle Times

With each saved match point, the crowd got louder, even when it didn’t seem possible to make more noise.

Seven times, the Washington volleyball team survived match point for Utah, then when Kara Bajema finished off a great match with one final block to give UW the five-set win, the crowd at Alaska Airlines Arena really went nuts.

And why not?

The No. 13 Huskies not only avenged an earlier defeat this season to No. 15 Utah, it was also their best chance in the final month of the season to impress the committee that will be putting together the NCAA tournament seedings and host sites through the regionals.

It would be hard not to be impressed with UW’s resilience after the 25-18, 20-25, 18-25, 25-14, 21-19 win.

“I will play with this team anywhere against anybody,” said Husky coach Keegan Cook, whose team has won five straight matches. “It was obviously a classic match and a memory that I think our kids deserve. … There were a lot of plays that we will watch for a while.”

Utah held a 14-11 lead in the fifth set, but Bajema saved three straight match points with kills. Utah also had chances to win when it while serving at 15-14, 17-16, 18-17 and 19-18. Each time, UW survived.

The Huskies got their second chance to win when Claire Hoffman’s serve, which was ruled long, was overturned on replay, giving her an ace and UW a 20-19 lead. Seconds later, the match was over.

Finally.

“We were really in a tough spot,” Cook said, not remembering a time when the Huskies saved more match points.

Barring something unforeseen, the Huskies (21-5, 12-4 Pac-12) will be a host for the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament after their regular-season finale on Nov. 29 at home against Washington State. With the win over Utah, they also kept alive the chance of being a top-four seed and hosting the next two rounds as well.

For that to happen, the Huskies would need to win their final four matches of the regular season, and even then nothing would be guaranteed. But UW still has a chance to get in the conversation thanks to the dramatic win.

The Utes (19-8, 11-5) were the Huskies’ highest-ranked opponent in the final two months of the regular season, and they entered the match tied for second in the Pac-12 with the Huskies.

“We try to address every match the same, but you can’t kid a kid,” he said. “This match was important.”

Utah beat Washington in four sets in Salt Lake City last month, winning the final three sets easily after UW rolled in the opening set.

For a while, it looked like history might repeat.

Washington dominated the first set, taking a 24-14 lead. That Utah won four points before the Huskies closed out the set seemed to matter little, but the Utes made it matter by carrying that momentum into the next set, and the set after that.

“It felt familiar after the third set down 2-1, and it felt like we were in Salt Lake City again, but this time the response was a lot different,” Cook said.

Bajema had eight of her 26 kills in the fifth set, and had a very good .339 hitting percentage. Samantha Drechsel had 15 kills and a .314 percentage.

Utah star Dani Drews had 19 kills to lead the Utes, but just a .133 hitting percentage.

In the end, it added up to a win that those in attendance will likely remember for a long time.

“That was for sure the best home environment we have had by far,” Cook said. “Not just in numbers, but in passion.”