ALAMOSA, Colo. – University of Colorado Colorado Springs junior middle blocker
Taylor Hamilton matched her career-high with 20 kills and senior setter
Morgan Evans moved into sixth in program career records for assists as the Mountain Lions (7-5, 2-2 RMAC) suffered a 3-2 setback to Adams State (8-5, 3-1 RMAC) tonight in Plachy Hall. The Grizzlies took the match with 25-22, 19-25, 25-21, 17-25 and 15-13 set scores.
Hamilton hit .390 tonight and finished this weekend's road trip with a .471 percentage after last night's performance at Fort Lewis. She also made five blocks on defense.
Alyssa Brinton added 16 kills with 14 digs and
Lauren Brown rounded out the offensive leaders with 12 kills. Evans improved her career assists total to 2,182 with 55 assists tonight.
Natasha Habert made 26 digs to lead the defense in her best performance of the conference season.
Adams State took an early lead at 8-4 with a 5-1 rally in the first set, but a late 7-1 run by the Mountain Lions made it a 22-21 advantage against the Grizzlies. Adams State took advantage of three UCCS miscues to score the final four points of the set and take a 1-0 match lead on a 25-22 decision. The Mountain Lions hit .385 in the second set and finished with a 6-1 run to even the match on a 25-19 win.
The Grizzlies scored six straight points in the third set to take a 17-15 lead against the Mountain Lions. UCCS tied the set at 20-20 on a kill from Hamilton, but Adams State used a 5-1 rally to win the set 25-21. A 12-2 Mountain Lion run in the fourth set built a 14-8 lead and UCCS kept at least a five-point lead the rest of the set to force a fifth set on a 25-17 victory.
Adams State built a 9-5 lead off of a 6-1 run in the fifth set before the Mountain Lions tied the score at 10-10 on a kill from Brinton. The Grizzlies scored the next three points and UCCS closed the set back to one point with kills from Hamilton and Brinton. Adams State reached match point at 14-12, and Brinton held off the Grizzlies with a kill, but Adams State finished the match on a kill to claim the night with a 15-13 decision in the deciding set.
UCCS will return home for three straight matches starting on Friday, Sept. 30, against New Mexico Highlands. The Cowgirls (5-4, 2-2 RMAC) swept both matches this weekend against Black Hills State and South Dakota Mines.