Colorado University Athletics
Colorado
Texas Tech
Buffs Blank Texas Tech In Three
October 08, 2008 | Volleyball
BOULDER — Junior Emilee Sisco recorded a match-high 12 kills as the University of Colorado volleyball team swept Texas Tech at the Coors Events Center on Wednesday night.
CU won convincingly 25-21, 25-16 and 25-11 to improve its record to 9-6 overall, 3-3 in the Big 12. Texas Tech fell to 5-13 and is 0-7 in league play.
“They are a good team, but we went into this match thinking we would have to work hard,” Sisco said. “At halftime we said that we need to come out right now and win this in three sets and not go to four or five. Nothing else was an option.”
This was the first three-set win at home for the Buffs since defeating No. 11 California 30-28, 30-25, 30-25 to win the Colorado Invitational on Sept. 2, 2007.
“It was a nice win for us,” head coach Pi'i Aiu said. “We still have a lot of work to do but this (win) is what we are looking for. We've got to go out and control matches and I thought we did that tonight. We stayed aggressive; we were playing defense and taking good swings.”
Sisco, who has led the Buffs in the last three matches, hit .478 in the win. She recorded just one error on 23 attacks.
“She played very well at Nebraska and she is starting to get the ball to good spots,” Aiu said. “Early this year she struggled a little bit but she is starting to get in rhythm again this year and move the ball. It's nice to have her.”
“I feel like I have been working a lot of things in practice and I have been getting more consistent,” Sisco said. “We have made a lot of changes from the beginning of the season and I think any kind of changes force people to be less consistent, so I think everyone working on that (consistency) helps to make fewer errors.”
Lauren Schaefer also had a good night for CU. She recorded seven kills on 10 errorless swings to hit .700. She also added a pair of block solos and four block assists.
“I'm really proud of how our team played,” Schaefer said. “I don't think they (TTU) played very well or what they are capable of playing. It's hard when a team doesn't show up to keep playing at your level. I don't think we let up at any time though. This is definitely a sign of maturity.”
Schylur Edelman and Alex Buth also added seven kills. Edelman hit .462 and Buth hit .357. CU hit .372 in the match thanks to 31 assists from Kaitlyn Burkett. Burkett added to the outstanding attack percentage with a .714 on five kills and seven attacks.
On defense Callie Webster and Buth each picked up seven digs to account for 14 of CU's 28 digs. Colorado held the Red Raiders to a .061 hitting percentage (27k-22e-82att). Caroline Courtney led TTU with eight kills and hit .533 (8k-0e-15att).
The Red Raiders went up 16-14 in the first set before CU took the next five points. The lead would be one the Buffs would not give up, only allowing TTU to get within two points. Sisco led the Buffs with four kills, while Edelman, Schaefer and Buth each recorded three. Colorado hit .278 with 15 kills and five errors on 36 swings.
Sisco went off in the second set and recorded seven of CU's 15 kills. She also hit .545 with just one error on 11 swings. As a team, the Buffs hit .480 in the set (15k-3e-25att). CU held the Red Raiders to a .040 attack percentage with just nine kills and eight errors on 25 attacks.
“She (Sisco) did a great job and I am really proud of her because she is really stepping up,” Schaefer said.
The Buffs were on fire in the third set and let TTU make mistakes. Edelman got the Buffs on the board with the first point and Schaefer followed that up with a pair of block solos. CU got out to a 12-6 and just continued to play well. The Buffs recorded 12 kills and hit .400 in the set. The Red Raiders hit -.042 with just seven kills and eight errors.
“It's nice to see them (the team) play a match like that,” Aiu said. “They were focused. We didn't have the let-ups that we might have had in the past. This was a great opportunity for us since we are playing Texas at home next.”
The Buffs will be back in action on Saturday, Oct. 11 against No. 3 Texas. The match is set for a 6:30 p.m. start at the Coors Events Center. CU's Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) will be sponsoring the 'Coats for Colorado' campaign, organized by Dependable Cleaners and Channel 7. CU fans to donate a new or gently used coat(s) will receive admission to the match for $1.
Also of note, the match time against Iowa State on Saturday, Oct. 18 has been scheduled for a 1 p.m. start due to a 5 p.m. football game against Kansas State the same day.
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