Buffs Start 2017 Season With Trip To Oklahoma

BOULDER—Colorado will kick off the 2017 season at the NIKE Invitational, facing Northwestern State, Seton Hall and former Big 8/12 rival Oklahoma, August 25-26, in Norman, Oklahoma.

The Buffs, who return 12 letterwinners from a 2016 squad that finished 14-16 overall, will start the tournament on August 25 against Northwestern State at 3:30 p.m. MT. Colorado will be back in action on August 26 with a pair of matches. CU will start the day at 9 a.m. with a meeting against Seton Hall before facing Oklahoma at 6 p.m. in the final contest of the tournament.

Live stats will be provided at soonersports.com, as well as CUBuffs.com. CU's match versus OU will be televised on Fox Sports Oklahoma (check your local listings to see if it is available in your area) and an audio stream is available on soonersports.com.

SCOUTING THE LADY DEMONS: Northwestern State recorded a 12-20 overall record and was 7-9 in the Southland Conference in 2016. The Lady Demons return nine letterwinners, which includes four starters. Sophomore Alexis Warren led NSU last season with 2.66 kills per set, while another sophomore, Kourney Seaton was third with 2.93 kills per set. Junior Channing Burleson led the Lady Demons' defense, averaging 4.77 digs per set, while Seaton was the top blocker with 0.82 blocks per set.

SCOUTING THE PIRATES: Seton Hall brings back 10 letterwinners (five starters) from a 2016 team that recorded a 16-16 record. The Pirates also recorded a 10-8 record in BIG EAST play. Dominique Mason was third for SHU last season, averaging 2.88 kills per set, while Cherise Hennigan was fourth with 2.53 kills per set. Haylee Gasser was a force at the net, posting 0.88 blocks per game. The Pirates lost their libero, Tessa Fournier, who averaged a team-best 4.99 digs per game.

SCOUTING THE SOONERS: Oklahoma just missed a .500 record last year, finishing 14-15 overall. The Sooners placed seventh in the Big 12 with a 5-11 record. Eight letterwinners return for OU, which includes three starters. Junior Madison Drescher is the top returning offensive threat (1.79 kills per set) and junior Audrey Alford is back at setter (11.29 assists per game). Another returner for the Sooners is redshirt junior Rachel Manriquez, the libero. She led OU with 3.27 digs per set last season.

WHAT'S NEXT: The Buffs will open the home slate next weekend, hosting the Omni Invitational Sept. 1-3, at Coors Events Center. While CU will not play on Sept. 1, there will be a pair of matches contested. Rice and Wake Forest will start things off at 10 a.m. on Sept. 1 and at 5 p.m., WFU will be back in action against Abilene Christian.

The invitational will start back up on Sept. 2 at 10 a.m. with a tilt between Rice and Abilene Christian and at 1 p.m., the Buffs will take the court against Wake Forest. CU will play again at 7 p.m. The final match of the invitational will be played Sept. 3. The Buffs will host Abilene Christian at 11 a.m.

TICKET INFORMATION
Single match tickets start at just $5 for general admission and $8 for reserved seating. Kids 12 and under are free. Season tickets are also available and start at just $25 for general admission, while reserved seats are $40. Fans can purchase single match and season tickets online at CUBuffs.com or by calling 303-49-BUFFS.

New for the 2017 season is the General Admission Flex season ticket for $35. Fans will receive 14 match vouchers redeemable to all games. The flex plan is 50% off single game pricing.

And don't forget about the Women's Sports Pass. For just $125, the Women's sports pass gives you general admission seating for all volleyball, soccer and women's basketball home games.

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