LAKEWOOD, Colo. – Senior outside hitter
Kim Catlett hit a career-high .467 with 16 kills to lead a strong University of Colorado Colorado Springs offensive effort as the Mountain Lions (12-5, 7-1 RMAC) swept Colorado Christian (9-7, 4-3 RMAC) tonight in the CCU Event Center. UCCS won in 25-14, 25-19 and 25-22 sets for the sixth straight win of the season.
The win streak is the longest since an eight-match win streak from Sept. 7-22, 2012, and it's the longest streak of conference matches since a nine-match streak from Oct. 3-27, 2009. The Mountain Lions remain in second in the RMAC standings with a half-match lead against Regis and are one match behind Western New Mexico. The Mustangs remained undefeated in the conference after a 3-1 win tonight against Adams State.
The Mountain Lions hit .581 with only two attack errors in the first set and never trailed to take the first set 25-14. UCCS started the set with a 6-2 run and closed out the set with an 8-2 rally. The Mountain Lions scored the first four points of the second set and allowed the Cougars to tie the set twice at 16-16 and 18-18 before a 7-1 run to finish the set and take a 2-0 match advantage.
UCCS built a 20-13 advantage in the third set before the Cougars scored the next four points and narrow the lead to 20-17. Colorado Christian pulled within a point at 22-21 after another three-point rally, but Catlett made three kills in the final stretch of the set as the Mountain Lions claimed the set 25-22 and the match 3-0. It was the first 3-0 road win for UCCS at Colorado Christian since 2011.
Catlett's .467 hitting performance was the best for a Mountain Lion this season as UCCS hit .324 as a team for its best performance since Sept. 25, 2012. Catlett added a team-high nine digs on defense as five Mountain Lions finished with five or more digs tonight.
Cassidy Bush made eight kills and a team-high three blocks while
Morgan Evans and
Celeste Henderson both finished with six kills. Evans made 35 assists to surpass the 700-assist mark this season. She is on pace to be the sixth Mountain Lion to average more than 10 assists per set in a season.
UCCS will remain on the road for another 5 p.m., match on Saturday at No. 17 Colorado Mines. The Orediggers fell in three sets to MSU Denver tonight in the first home loss of the season. The Mountain Lions are 5-0 in road matches this season.
