COLORADO SPRINGS - The University of Colorado at Colorado Springs volleyball team scored a couple of firsts in Friday's win over Fort Lewis. First, the Mountain Lions recorded a win in its first match at UCCS' Gallogly Events Center. Also, they handed the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference's last unbeaten team its first loss.
Behind 20 kills by
Nikki Kinzer and an outstanding service performance by
Skylar Lewandowski, UCCS knocked off Fort Lewis 3-1 (27-25, 22-25, 25-14, 25-22 in the second match of the 2010 Hyatt Place Mountain Lion Classic. The nonconference loss dropped the Skyhawks to 4-1 on the season.
Lewandowski's match-best five aces tell only part of the story. Not only did the Mountain Lions score at least one point on every service rotation she had, the freshman also served set-changing runs of five and four (twice) points.
Nicole Pederson added 13 kills for UCCS, which evened its record at 3-3. Kinzer had two solo blocks and four block assists, while
Kendall Utz and Alex Nuttall added 18 and 15 digs respectively. Setter Lindsey Stich coordinated the attack with 40 assists, five kills and 11 digs.
Jenna Kinzer was outstanding as libero for the Skyhawks with 26 digs and a pair of aces. Chelsea Flaming led Fort Lewis with 15 kills, while Jessica Wilson added 12.
The Mountain Lions had to overcome an eight-point deficit to grab the first set 27-25. Fort Lewis led 16-8 when a
Nikki Kinzer kill put Lewandowski at the service line. When she left, the gap had been closed to two. The Mountain Lions finally tied the set at 19 and the teams traded points all the way to 25-all. A Fort Lewis hitting error and a Lewandowski ace gave UCCS the set.
UCCS never led in a second set that featured seven ties, the last at 22. Flaming scored three consecutive kills as the Skyhawks drew even at a set apiece.
It was Lewandowski serving again that helped UCCS turn a 3-3 tie into a 7-3 lead from which Fort Lewis never recovered. Kinzer and Stich also served up rallies as the Mountain Lions extended the lead to 14-5. Fort Lewis worked its way back to 17-13, but two kills by
Sonja Johnson, one by Stich and two more aces by Lewandowski grew the gap to 22-13. UCCS took the set 25-14.
The Mountain Lions opened the fourth set with a 1408 lead, but Fort Lewis rallied behind a pair of blocks by Kristin Stephen and Flaming to tie it at 14. It was still tied at 19 when a Skyhawk service error and a kill by Jenice Shippy gave the Mountain Lions a two-point lead. A point later, kills by Nuttall and Shippy and a hitting error by the Skyhawks increased the advantage to 24-20. Fort Lewis responded with two straight points before Kinzer put the match away with a kill.
Fort Lewis will play again - against Grand Canyon - at 2 p.m. on Friday and UCCS will closed the first day's action with a 7 p.m. match against Winona State. Both teams will play twice on Saturday.
