Colorado Sweeps Through Texas Tech

Saturday, September 16

Lubbock, Texas

6 p.m.

Colorado

Texas Tech

Photo by: CUBuffs.com

September 16, 2006 | Volleyball

By: Linda Sprouse, Assistant SID

LUBBOCK, Texas ? Ashley Nu'u recorded 40 assists for the University of Colorado (6-3, 2-0 Big 12) as the Buffs rolled past the Texas Tech Red Raiders (7-3, 0-2 Big 12) 30-27, 30-28, 30-22 on Saturday night in Lubbock. Nu'u led the Buffs to a .306 hitting percentage and recorded a 1.000 hitting percentage herself as she went five for five.

“I think it was a sloppy kind of match, but it was a good win for us,” Nu'u said. “It was kind of a rough match for us, but we got out of here with a win and that says a lot about our team. It was a really good win.”

The win was the fifth straight for the Buffaloes and was the second consecutive Big 12 win. The last time CU won its two first league contests was in 2002 when they defeated Baylor and No. 17 Texas A&M. The only losses for the Buffs this season have come at the hands of three ranked opponents in UCLA, Hawai'i and Florida.

Amber Sutherland led CU with 12 kills and hit .318. She continued to contribute in other aspects of the match by adding three assists, an ace, eight digs and four block assists. Lara Bossow had the second-best hitting percentage on the team at .556. She recorded 11 kills on 18 swings with just one error. Bossow also put up four block assists.

Mallori Gibson also tallied 11 kills and Lauren Schaefer recorded a .450 hitting percentage with 10 kills on 20 swings with one errors. Both added three block assists. Kristen Karlik continued to be a digging machine as she picked up 12 digs on the night. She added three assists as well.

The Buffs were able to escape Lubbock with a win in three, unlike last year when they lost in five after forcing a fifth game after dropping the first two games.

“Lubbock is always a tough place to play, it's a tough place to get to from Colorado,” Colorado Head Coach Pi'i Aiu said. “It's a good road win for us in three, even though we didn't place our best. But Amber Sutherland did hit above .300 again and Ashley Nu'u hit 1.000.”

Colorado dug 36 balls compared to TTU's 30 and out blocked the Red Raiders by putting up 12.0 blocks to TTU's 9.0. The biggest difference in the match was in the kills department. Colorado notched 51 kills and held TTU to just 40. The Red Raiders also committed 22 hitting errors, while CU tallied four less.

The Buffs will take their five-match win streak to Austin as they will face the Longhorns on Wednesday, Sept. 20. Texas is currently ranked fifth in the CSTV/AVCA Division I Coaches Poll. The match is set for a 5:30 p.m. start.