GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – The University of Colorado Colorado Springs volleyball team battled closely with No. 20 Colorado Mesa University Friday night in Grand Junction, Colo., leading the Mavericks for a majority of the first two sets, but the Mavericks claimed the sweep on their home court, 3-0.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
- Final: 0-3 (24-26, 17-27, 17-25)
- Records: UCCS (8-11, 3-8 RMAC) | CMU (14-4, 9-2 RMAC)
- Facility | Location: Brownson Arena | Grand Junction, Colo.
- All-Time Series: The Mavericks have won the last six matches against UCCS to increase the all-time series lead to 37-8.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- UCCS dominated the Mavericks in the opening set, leading CMU for most of the set. The Mountain Lions took an early 7-3 lead before the Mavericks scored three straight points to come within one point of UCCS, 7-6, but the visiting team quickly responded to grow their lead back to five points, 11-6. Colorado Mesa, trailing by five points again later in the stanza, tied the set at 18-18 behind two kills and three UCCS errors. The Mountain Lions forced CMU to commit an attack error for set point, 24-23, but CMU rallied to put down three straight kills, winning the first set, 26-24.
- The second set started similar to set one with UCCS snagging an 8-4 lead. Four different Mountain Lions put down kills – Nicole Medlin, Raegen Emery, Hannah Ammerman and Julia Geiger, combined with a block assist from Geiger and Tori Perduk, capped off by a solo block from Ammerman for the early 8-4 advantage. CMU took their first lead of the set, 17-16, and rolled to take set two, finishing the action on an 8-1 run to win the second stanza, 25-17.
- For the third straight set, the Mountain Lions earned the first point of the set, but the lead wouldn't last long as CMU notched two kills and blocked an attack by the Mountain Lions to take 3-2 lead they would not relinquish. The Mountain Lions were held to a match low nine kills and a .056 hitting mark in the final set.
MATCH STATISTICS
- Geiger hit a solid .500 at the net behind nine kills on 16 attempts.
- Medlin added eight kills on 16 attempts for a .438 hitting mark.
- Reilly Babcock and Joei Barela quarterbacked the offense, combining for 29 of UCCS' 30 assists. Babcock posted 17 assists, two aces and four digs while Barela notched 12 assists and nine digs.
- The Mavericks out-hit UCCS in kills, 42-32, and attack percentage, .202 to .136.
- Sydney Leffler led CMU with 13 kills and a .417 attacking rate.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Barela posted career highs tonight in set assists (12) and digs (nine).
- Clara Benskin posted her first career block and added a career high five attacks.
UP NEXT
- UCCS will end a six-match road trip tomorrow night, Oct. 15, at Westminster College. First serve will go out at 4 p.m.
SOCIAL
Twitter - @GoMountainLions
Instagram - @gomountainlions
Facebook – Go Mountain Lions
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.
