IRVINE, Calif. – The University of Colorado Colorado Springs headed to the Golden State to open the 2023 season at the Concordia University Irvine Golden Eagle Invitational in Irvine, Calif. The Mountain Lions lost the season opener to California State University East Bay, 3-2, and were swept in the evening match by Azusa Pacific.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
- Final Score vs. East Bay: 2-3 (21-25, 19-25, 25-20, 25-17, 14-16) | vs. Azusa Pacific: 0-3 (9-25, 26-28, 14-25)
- Records: UCCS (0-2, 0-0 RMAC) | CSUEB (2-0, 0-0 CCAA) | APU (3-0, 0-0 PWC)
- Facility | Location: CU Arena | Irvine, Calif.
- All-Time Series: Today's matches between East Bay and Azusa Pacific marked the first time UCCS has faced either team.
HOW IT HAPPENED VS. EAST BAY
- Starting the morning with a 2-0 deficit in the opening set, the Mountain Lions rattled off four straight points to take their first lead of the day, 4-2, that ended with a block from Lauryn Shockley and Nicole Medlin. The two-point lead would prove to be the largest for UCCS as both teams knotted up the score 13 times before CSUEB ended the set on a 3-0 run to take a 25-21 opening set win.
- The first five points for the Pioneers came by way of UCCS errors, but the Mountain Lions battled back to trail East Bay, 6-4, early in the second set. CSUEB was able to snag a 16-8 lead before head coach Tara Hittle called a timeout to stop the rally. The Mountain Lions came out of the timeout and went on an 8-1 run. Two errors from the Pioneers followed by a Medlin kill and an ace from Isabel Hudspeth put UCCS within four points, 16-12. The 8-1 run ended with three straight kills from Medlin, Julia Geiger and Raegen Emery and an ace from Mackenzie Ransom, putting UCCS within one point of the Pioneers, 17-16. The California team was able to fend off the Mountain Lions, ending the second set with an 8-3 rally to post a 25-19 advantage.
- Set three swung in favor of the Mountain Lions as they stormed to a 25-22 win. Tied at 19-19, Maylen Mitrovich served up an ace before another East Bay error forced the Pioneers to call a timeout. On a 3-0 run, freshman Sydnee Walker blocked a Pioneer attempt the was followed by a kill from Emery and a Hudspeth ace before Walker sealed the win with her first collegiate ace, 25-20.
- The Mountain Lions' momentum carried into the fourth set as they dominated with a 25-17 win to even the match. UCCS trailed by as many as three points in the opening action of the set, but a 12-3 run turned it around for UCCS as they took a 19-10 lead, their largest lead of the match. Nine of the 12 points came from kills as Shockley accounted for four put-downs. East Bay attempted a rally and came within five points of UCCS, 22-17. After a Mountain Lion timeout, UCCS forced the Pioneers to commit an attack error before Walker put the set away with back-to-back kills.
- Forcing a fifth set, the Mountain Lions found themselves in a seven-point shortfall, 12-5, and once again rallied back to knot the set at 13-all. UCCS started the rally by making the Pioneers commit three attack errors as part of a 5-0 run. One rally later and 13-10 on the scoreboard, Geiger put down her ninth kill of the morning to tie the set at 13-13, but East Bay pulled away to outscore the Mountain Lions, 3-1, to finish the set and take the match, 3-2.
MATCH STATISTICS VS. EAST BAY
- Shockley and Camden Strain tied for match high honors with 11 kills each. Strain led the front line with a .286 hitting mark, while Shockley attempted a team high 37 attacks behind a .135 attack percentage.
- Medlin led the defensive effort at the net, assisting on three blocks and adding a solo block as part of UCCS' seven team blocks. She also chipped in nine kills and two digs.
- Libero Ransom served up a match high four aces and to go with her team high 17 digs.
- Starting setter Mitrovich tied Ransom for a team high 17 digs and orchestrated 25 assists while adding three aces and three kills.
- Playing her first match for the black and gold, Walker chipped in seven kills, 13 digs, three aces and two blocks.
- As a team, the Mountain Lions hit .133 behind 57 kills and 180 attempts. Mitrovich and Joei Barela combined for 39 of UCCS' 51 set assists.
- The Pioneers were led by Mia Jordan's 11 kills and .588 hitting mark.
HOW IT HAPPENED VS. AZUSA PACIFIC
- In the evening match against Azusa Pacific, the Mountain Lions dropped a 25-7 decision in the opening set. APU held UCCS to only three kills on 23 attempts and nine attacking errors, while Azusa Pacific boasted a 5-0 advantage in aces and in blocks.
- UCCS battled in the second set with the Cougars as both teams went to extra points. Trailing 17-11, UCCS went on an 8-1 run to take a 19-18. One of Emery's six kills in the match pushed UCCS to set point, 24-22, but the Mountain Lions would eventually fall to APU, 28-26. UCCS suffered the match loss after falling 25-14 in set three.
MATCH STATISTICS VS. AZUSA PACIFIC
- Medlin and Emery combined for 16 kills (eight kills each) as UCCS finished with 25 kills as a team.
- Medlin was solid at the net, hitting .462 after just two errors on 13 attempts. She also added two block assists, defensively.
- Mitrovich paced the Mountain Lions with 19 assists and nine digs.
- APU held the advantage over UCCS in kills (29-25), hitting percentage (.169 to .020), assists (27-23), aces (19-6), digs (41-32) and blocks (8-5).
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- The Concordia University Irvine Golden Eagle Invitational is the first time in program history the Mountain Lions have played a preseason tournament in California.
- Three Mountain Lions saw their first career action for the black and gold on Friday – Mitrovich, Walker and Hudspeth.
- Shockley started the season ranked ninth all-time in attacks with 2,535, but jumped up two spots after Friday's action and is now seventh for most attacks in a career with 2,589.
UP NEXT
- UCCS will close out the Golden Eagle Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 2 against California State University Dominguez Hills at 10 a.m. (MT) and host school Concordia at 5:30 p.m.
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As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs competes in 14 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
