University of Colorado Athletics
Colorado
Texas Tech
Sutherland Leads Buffs Past Texas Tech
October 21, 2006 | Volleyball
“It's a very nice win for us tonight,” head coach Pi'i Aiu said. “This is our seventh conference win and I think if we get to 10, we will probably make the tournament. And I think if we get to 11 wins, we will make the tournament. And that is our goal right now.”
“Sutherland has been coming up huge for us. She's just doing a great job. She's fighting through some injuries and battling through the season. She's just doing a great job for us. She's the kid we want to get the ball to when we need points.”
The Buffs hit .265 on the night with 59 kills. Ashley Nu'u dished out 50 assists, averaging over 16.00 per game. Nu'u hit a match-best .500 with three kills on six errorless swings. Sutherland hit .341. Lauren Schaefer and Austin Zimmerman each hit .286. Schaefer, who has been on a roll the last few matches, hammered 10 kills. Zimmerman recorded five. Alex Buth notched 12 kills to hit .269.
“I'm just having fun,” Schaefer said. “It was a fun match and I was trying not to think about school or anything else. I'm loving it and its so much fun right now. My confidence is really up right now.”
“Schaefer is having a great season,” Aiu said. “I don't know what her numbers are because I hardly look at stats, but I would guess she is hitting in the high .300's on the season.”
The Buffs put up 6.5 total blocks, including two solos and two assists from Zimmerman. Sutherland also had three assists.
CU won the first game handily by a 30-21 margin, never trailing in the frame. The Buffs hit .371 and held TTU to a .156 attack percentage. Schaefer was a perfect four-for-four and hit 1.000. Sutherland hit .400 with nine kills. Sutherland also added seven digs in the set. Nu'u handed out 17 assists.
The second game was much closer, but the Buffs took it 30-27. CU hit .267 and the Red Raiders hit .143. CU recorded 19 kills on 45 swings. Sutherland notched five kills (.154) and Buth added four. Zimmerman tallied three kills on five errorless swings to hit .600.
The final game went back-and-forth the entire way and needed extra points in order for CU to secure the victory. The Red Raiders had game point at 31-30, but the Buffs came back with three straight points to win the match 33-31. Sutherland hammered 10 kills in the game and hit .438 and Nu'u dished out a game-high 20 assists in the frame. Karlik picked up 11 digs.
