THIS WEEK'S MATCHUPS
- The University of Colorado Colorado Springs volleyball team will hit the road this weekend for their first back-to-back road trip of the season. The Mountain Lions will travel to Alamosa, Colo. to play Adams State University on Friday, Oct. 1, before crossing the border to take on New Mexico Highlands University on Saturday, Oct. 2. Both matches will start at 7 p.m.
MATCH COVERAGE
LAST TIME OUT
- The Mountain Lions faced the then-ranked No. 3 team in Division II last Friday night in Gallolgy. UCCS fell in three to the Roadrunners (22-25, 22-25, 18-25) The Mountain Lions forced the Roadrunners into eight service errors on the night. Camden Strain tallied a team high nine kills and committed only one error on 19 attempts for a .421 hitting mark. In the back row, the Mountain Lions defense was led by Jordyn Kinsey's 10 digs. The Roadrunners Rylee Hladky led all players with 19 kills and a .581 hitting percentage.
- UCCS finished the match with 35 kills, 30 assists, 36 digs and three blocks. Ammerman registered one block and assisted on two more as the Mountain Lions finished with three team blocks.
- The following night against Colorado Christian University (L, 3-2, (25-21, 28-30, 25-22, 22-25, 10-15)), Lauryn Shockley tabbed a double-double with 16 kills and 15 digs, as Maren Burkhardt chipped in 11 kills and hit .417. Emily Ettel accounted for 51 of UCCS' 54 assists and added 10 digs and four blocks (three block assists). Ammerman finished the night with eight kills, three aces, five digs and three blocks. Kinsey served a match high four aces and added eight digs.
- As a team, the Mountain Lions hit .199 with 58 kills. Both teams finished the night with eight blocks.
RMAC RECORD/STANDINGS
- UCCS enters the weekend with a 3-8 overall record. They are currently in 15th place in the league standings with a 0-4 mark.
- Friday's opponent, Adams State, is in a four-way tie for third place in the RMAC standings. The Grizzlies are 7-6 overall and 3-1 in the RMAC and have won both home matches this season.
- The Cowgirls are tied for ninth place with three other RMAC teams that own a 1-3 record. NMHU is 5-9 on the season and have played two home matches. Their lone RMAC win came at home on Sept. 18 against Chadron State College (W, 3-0), followed by a 3-2 home win over Eastern New Mexico on Sept. 27.
THE SERIES
- Vs. Adams State: The Grizzlies hold a 32-23 advantage over UCCS, but the Mountain Lions have won the last five matches against ASU, and six of the last seven. UCCS is 7-19 when facing ASU on their home court.
- Vs. New Mexico Highlands: In 43 meetings against the Cowgirls, UCCS has defeated NMHU 26 times (26-17). UCCS is currently on an eight-match win streak over the Cowgirls and have taken nine of the last 10 matches.
SCOUTING REPORT
- ASU Grizzlies: The Grizzlies are the second-best blocking team in the league, registering 2.31 blocks (111.0 total) per set. Shannon Mulkey is a dual threat at the net, leading the team in blocks (40) while adding 2.19 kills per set with a .220 hitting mark while teammate Sai Collins leads the team with 45 kills (2.52 per set) on 324 attempts. Running the offensive schemes are Madeleine Benally (194 assists) and Bailey Schlosser (193 assists).
- ASU has won both home matches this season, highlighted by a sweep over then-ranked No. 2 Angelo State on Sept. 7. The Grizzlies charted another sweep on their home court on Sept. 17 against Chadron State College.
- NMHU Cowgirls: Saturday's match will be the Cowgirls fourth home match of the season as they enter the weekend 2-0 at home after earning wins over Chadron State (W, 3-0) and Western New Mexico (W, 3-2), before playing host to CSU Pueblo and UCCS this weekend.
- NMHU is led by Lisa Langi who leads the RMAC in total attacks (513) and kills (170). Elena Rivera has tallied a league high 245 digs while Angellina Oliver leads the RMAC and team in blocks, stopping 56 opponents' attacks.
- As a team, the Cowgirls are pacing the conference with 638 assists while putting down nearly 12 kills per set.
HOT TAKES
- The win in the opening set on Saturday against the Cougars snapped a 12-set losing streak for UCCS.
- Jordyn Kinsey is currently sixth in digs in the career record books. Kinsey has accounted for 1,179 digs in four seasons, and is 227 digs shy of fifth place, held by Kim Catlett (2012-15, 1,406 digs). She needs 633 digs to become the all-time leader at UCCS, currently owned by Andrea Weedman (2004-07) with career 1,811 digs.
- Shockley is ranked in the top five in the league in kills per set (first, 3.56), total kills (third, 153), points per set (third, 3.97) and attacks per set (fifth, 8.84).
- UCCS is in the top half of the league in several categories, including hitting percentage (fifth, .200), kills per set (sixth, 12.28), and assists per set (seventh, 11.02).
UCCS UNDER HEAD COACH CHRISSY ELDER
- Chrissy Elder is in her ninth season as the Head Coach for the University of Colorado Colorado Springs volleyball program in 2021 after seven consecutive RMAC Tournament appearances for the Mountain Lions.
- Elder won her 100th match as head coach of the Mountain Lions, accomplishing the feat in a 3-2 home win over Texas A&M International on Friday, Sept. 10. In nine seasons at UCCS, Elder owns a 101-116 record (.465), and she has a head coaching career record of 108-139 (.437) over 10 seasons.
UPCOMING MATCHES
- UCCS will play three of their next four matches on the road. Following this weekend's matches at ASU and NMHU, the Mountain Lions will return to Gallogly Events Center to take on Colorado State University Pueblo on Tuesday, Oct. 5 at 7 p.m. before heading to Denver, Colo. to face Regis University on Oct. 8.
SOCIAL
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Instagram - @gomountainlions
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As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs competes in 16 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
