Mountain Lions playoff bound
The University of Colorado at Colorado Springs defeated the Colorado College Tigers 3-0 (30-22, 30-28, 30-25) in a match that ended at 7:20 p.m. Saturday night. But the Mountain Lionsâ€TM bigger victory came two hours later in the mountain town of Gunnison.
Thatâ€TMs where Western State defeated Adams State in five games, boosting CU-Colorado Springs into the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference playoffs.
CU-Colorado Springs finished its conference schedule with a record of 9-10 Friday night. When Adams State lost Saturday, the Grizzlies dropped to 8-11 in conference play, leaving the Mountain Lions with one final road trip to Kearney, Neb. and a date with the No. 1-ranked Nebraska-Kearney Lopers.
While Saturdayâ€TMs nonconference match was meaningless in relation to the playoff picture, it was far from meaningless to CU-Colorado Springs since Colorado College (21-11) had beaten the Mountain Lions earlier this season.
CU-Colorado Springs raced to an 11-6 lead in Game 1 only to see the Tigers rally to tie the game at 18. The Mountain Lions, spurred by a strong service game, closed out the game with a 12-4 run.
Freshman Natalie Newberry was particularly effective serving as the Mountain Lions reeled off runs of four- and three-point runs during her two turns behind the service line in Game 1. For the match, CU-Colorado Springs won 21 of the 29 points played while Newberry was serving.
Game 2 was a back and forth affair that the Tigers led 23-19 before a Jill Wrenn kill put Newberry at serve again. Six consecutive points later, the Mountain Lions had a 26-23 lead that they did not relinquish.
Colorado College scored eight straight points to take a 12-4 lead in Game 3. The Mountain Lions countered with a 23-8 run that put the match away.
Wrenn had a match-high 15 kills, while Andrea Weedman added 12 kills and a match-high 15 digs. Kelly Olson and Caroline Ottino each added nine kills.
The Tigers were led by 6-foot-4 hitter Katharine Hauschka, who had 13 kills.
The win improved the Mountain Lionsâ€TM record to 15-14, their first winning record since 2001 and three times their win total from last season.
UCCS Players/Staff Featured | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Kelly Olson | 2 | OH | Jr. |
| Kelly Olson | 2 | OH | Sr. |
 | Caroline Ottino | 14 | MB | |
 | Caroline Ottino | 8 | MB | Fr. |
 | Caroline Ottino | 13 | MD | So. |
 | Caroline Ottino | 13 | MB | |
 | Caroline Ottino | 13 | MB | |
 | Jill Wrenn | 5 | OH/RS | Fr. |
 | Jill Wrenn | 4 | RS | So. |
 | Jill Wrenn | 5 | RS | |
 | Jill Wrenn | 5 | RS | |
 | Natalie Newberry | 11 | L/DS | Fr. |
 | Andrea Weedman | 9 | OH | Fr. |
 | Andrea Weedman | 9 | OH/DS | Sr. |
 | Andrea Weedman | 9 | OH/DS | Sr. |
 | Andrea Weedman | 9 | OH/DS | Sr. |
| Additional News Stories | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| November 29, 2004 |  | Volleyball adds two key recruits | The transformation of the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs volleyball program moved into phase 2 Monday when second-year coach Jessica Wood announced the addition of two key recruits during the early signing period. |
| November 13, 2004 |  | Season comes to an end in Kearney | Perhaps if the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs hadn’t played the Nebraska Kearney Lopers so tightly in their first meeting of the season, the Lopers may have looked past CU-Colorado Springs.After the Mountain Lions gave No. 1 Nebraska Kearney all they could handle on Oct. 16, the Lopers knew they would have to bring their A-game when the two teams met again in the opening round of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament Friday night in Kearney, Neb. And that’s exactly what the Lopers did.As they have done all season Nebraska-Kearney (34-0) proved it was the best team in the country dismantling the Mountain Lions 3-0 (30-13, 30-20, 30-21). Kearney outhit CU-Colorado Springs .361 to .077. |
| November 5, 2004 |  | Mountain Lions Waiting | It's out of their hands now. |
| November 3, 2004 |  | Mountain Lions stay alive, beat CSU-P | The University of Colorado at Colorado Springs beat its biggest rival Tuesday evening in Pueblo. The Mountain Lions won a hard-fought match over the Colorado State-Pueblo Thunderwolves 3-1 (24-30, 30-24, 30-28, 32-30). |
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