Saturday, September 21
Boulder, Colo.
12:00 PM
Colorado
6-2
3
vs
0
UMBC
3-7
1
2
3
F
UMBC
23
7
18
0
Colorado
25
25
25
3
Team Stats
UMBC
CU
Kills
23
44
Errors
19
14
Attempts
98
108
Hitting %
.041
.278
Points
32
58
Assists
21
42
Aces
6
6
Blocks
3
8
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
18
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
7
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
6
Aces
1
Blocks
3
Kills
5
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Players Mentioned
S/OPP
/ Volleyball
S
/ VolleyballMB
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
OH/L
/ Volleyball
RS/MB
/ VolleyballMB
/ VolleyballOH
/ Volleyball
DS/L
/ VolleyballPhoto by: Tony Harman
Buffs Dominate In Sweep Over Retrievers
September 21, 2019 | Volleyball
BOULDER – The University of Colorado pushed through the University of Maryland Baltimore County in a 3-0 (25-23, 25-7, 25-18) sweep Saturday afternoon to improve to 2-0 in the Colorado Classic to secure at least a tie of the title.
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The Buffaloes (6-2) needed a strong 19 kill first set to finish the Retrievers (3-8), then put down the hammer with the second-largest margin of victory in school history in a set at 25-7. The only larger set win came against George Mason in 2015 at 25-6.
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A pair of seniors led the way for Colorado as Justine Spann had 18 kills and a .297 hitting percentage to lead the match and Rachel Whipple had a season-high 19 digs. Both averaged six of their respectful stat per set for the first time.
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Also for the Buffs, the middles continued to work efficiently with a combined 12 kills on 22 attempts. Meegan Hart had seven kills and three blocks, while Danielle Price had five errorless kills with a .556 hitting percentage and four blocks. Sterling Parker had 17 errorless swings for five kills as well, while Jill Scheggenburger added six.
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Setter Jenna Ewert dished out 37 assists, bringing her tournament total to 88 assists in seven sets (12.5 per set). She had six digs in the backrow, while Zoe Neverdowski was second on the team with nine. Spann chipped in seven digs.
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CU has a short turnaround as the team takes on Campbell University in the Schneggenburger sister showdown at 7:30 p.m.
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HOW IT HAPPENED
Both teams came out of the gate swinging, led by UMBC with a 5-4 advantage. The Buffs tied it back up at nine all and took the lead one swing later with three-straight Spann kills. The Retrievers took a 14-11 lead when Mahoney called a challenge on an ace, unsuccessfully. CU closed the gap but UMBC held a 17-15 lead. The set was tied back up at 18 all, led by Spann's seven kills. The Buffs took the lead at 20-19, forcing a UMBC timeout. CU earned set-point at 24-22, closing out the set on a Parker kill 25-23. Spann led the way with eight kills in the set and a .400 hitting percentage while Ewert dished out 18 assists in the set. Whipple had seven digs.
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CU started out the second set with a quick 3-2 lead. UMBC called timeout after Colorado jumped out to a 7-3 lead with Hart continuing where she left off yesterday with seven kills on 10 swings without an error. Whipple continued to patrol the back for the Buffs with 13 digs and a Colorado 12-5 lead, forcing another Retriever timeout. The stop didn't change things as CU jumped to a 19-7 lead and began subbing out starters. Ewert finished with 28 assists in two sets and Hart was subbed out with seven kills in 10 attempts. The Buffs rolled to a 21-7 advantage and brought in freshman Kelley Levaggi for her first look in a Buffs uniform, registering an assist to Spann for set-point. Emily DeMure came in and served three aces in one rotation. CU hit .500 in the set as Whipple put up 14 digs and Spann put down a baker's dozen kills.
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The third set started close with a 5-4 UMBC lead. The Retrievers repeated the performance to take a 10-8 lead. Spann put down a kill and a block to give CU its first lead of the set at 11-10. Back-to-back blocks gave the Buffs a 14-11 lead and forced UMBC into a timeout. Out of the timeout the Buffs put down a third-straight blocks, all featuring Hart in the middle. Colorado kept the lead, hitting the 20-point mark at 20-16 off a Schneggenburger kill. CU hit match-point at 24-18, when UMBC called timeout and CU pulled three starters. Colorado sealed the win the at 25-18 with a .278 hitting percentage led by Spann's 18 kills and Whipples 18 digs.
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QUOTES
Head Coach Jesse Mahoney
General
"We are happy to get the win. UMBC defended exceptionally well especially in sets one and three. They made us take extra swings. In set one we needed 19 kills to win that match. They made us work and we had a lot of blocks that they covered. Kudos to them. We were in and out of being as focused as we can be. It is a little microcosm of our team. We blow someone out 25-7 and then go 25-23. That is something that, as we get farther along in our season, we have to start maturing a little more. Regardless of the score we have to play as hard as we can. We are happy to get the win and it is a quick turnaround before we play again at 7:30."
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On Some First Set Struggles
"It is a combo of a slow start and they played very well. I don't want to discount how well they played in the first. We made a lot of errors and a lot of service errors. We made some adjustments between sets one and two and focused on picking up tips. They had more tip kills than attack kills in the second set. We made that adjustment there. We played a little bit harder, frankly. We didn't like how we played in the first set and I think it showed in the second."
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Senior Libero Rachel Whipple
On The Team's Performance
"It feels good. I think we are finding our groove and the blockers and back row are clicking really well. We are doing a better job of trusting each other which makes my job easier. It was really fun and hopefully it continues tonight."
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On The Importance Of First Touches
"That is huge. If we can pass well and run our middles a lot it screws up their blockers on the other side. We pull that middle blocker to stay with ours and we get a one on one on the pin hitter. The first touch is so important. If you can pass and serve there is high possibility you are going to win. It is what we practice a lot and is very important."
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On Sweeping
"The biggest part is saving our bodies. Last night, going to four sets wasn't super awesome. Three sets lets us save our bodies."
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Senior Outside Justine Spann
"It is great. Being able to pass is definitely key. We can run our middles and the second the other team respects our middles, I get splits in the block. That definitely changes everything and it is great. We are really compatible as a team right now. While we are killing a team and then letting them back into it and making errors on our part. I hope we can keep it going tonight."
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The Buffaloes (6-2) needed a strong 19 kill first set to finish the Retrievers (3-8), then put down the hammer with the second-largest margin of victory in school history in a set at 25-7. The only larger set win came against George Mason in 2015 at 25-6.
Â
A pair of seniors led the way for Colorado as Justine Spann had 18 kills and a .297 hitting percentage to lead the match and Rachel Whipple had a season-high 19 digs. Both averaged six of their respectful stat per set for the first time.
Â
Also for the Buffs, the middles continued to work efficiently with a combined 12 kills on 22 attempts. Meegan Hart had seven kills and three blocks, while Danielle Price had five errorless kills with a .556 hitting percentage and four blocks. Sterling Parker had 17 errorless swings for five kills as well, while Jill Scheggenburger added six.
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Setter Jenna Ewert dished out 37 assists, bringing her tournament total to 88 assists in seven sets (12.5 per set). She had six digs in the backrow, while Zoe Neverdowski was second on the team with nine. Spann chipped in seven digs.
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CU has a short turnaround as the team takes on Campbell University in the Schneggenburger sister showdown at 7:30 p.m.
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HOW IT HAPPENED
Both teams came out of the gate swinging, led by UMBC with a 5-4 advantage. The Buffs tied it back up at nine all and took the lead one swing later with three-straight Spann kills. The Retrievers took a 14-11 lead when Mahoney called a challenge on an ace, unsuccessfully. CU closed the gap but UMBC held a 17-15 lead. The set was tied back up at 18 all, led by Spann's seven kills. The Buffs took the lead at 20-19, forcing a UMBC timeout. CU earned set-point at 24-22, closing out the set on a Parker kill 25-23. Spann led the way with eight kills in the set and a .400 hitting percentage while Ewert dished out 18 assists in the set. Whipple had seven digs.
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CU started out the second set with a quick 3-2 lead. UMBC called timeout after Colorado jumped out to a 7-3 lead with Hart continuing where she left off yesterday with seven kills on 10 swings without an error. Whipple continued to patrol the back for the Buffs with 13 digs and a Colorado 12-5 lead, forcing another Retriever timeout. The stop didn't change things as CU jumped to a 19-7 lead and began subbing out starters. Ewert finished with 28 assists in two sets and Hart was subbed out with seven kills in 10 attempts. The Buffs rolled to a 21-7 advantage and brought in freshman Kelley Levaggi for her first look in a Buffs uniform, registering an assist to Spann for set-point. Emily DeMure came in and served three aces in one rotation. CU hit .500 in the set as Whipple put up 14 digs and Spann put down a baker's dozen kills.
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The third set started close with a 5-4 UMBC lead. The Retrievers repeated the performance to take a 10-8 lead. Spann put down a kill and a block to give CU its first lead of the set at 11-10. Back-to-back blocks gave the Buffs a 14-11 lead and forced UMBC into a timeout. Out of the timeout the Buffs put down a third-straight blocks, all featuring Hart in the middle. Colorado kept the lead, hitting the 20-point mark at 20-16 off a Schneggenburger kill. CU hit match-point at 24-18, when UMBC called timeout and CU pulled three starters. Colorado sealed the win the at 25-18 with a .278 hitting percentage led by Spann's 18 kills and Whipples 18 digs.
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QUOTES
Head Coach Jesse Mahoney
General
"We are happy to get the win. UMBC defended exceptionally well especially in sets one and three. They made us take extra swings. In set one we needed 19 kills to win that match. They made us work and we had a lot of blocks that they covered. Kudos to them. We were in and out of being as focused as we can be. It is a little microcosm of our team. We blow someone out 25-7 and then go 25-23. That is something that, as we get farther along in our season, we have to start maturing a little more. Regardless of the score we have to play as hard as we can. We are happy to get the win and it is a quick turnaround before we play again at 7:30."
Â
On Some First Set Struggles
"It is a combo of a slow start and they played very well. I don't want to discount how well they played in the first. We made a lot of errors and a lot of service errors. We made some adjustments between sets one and two and focused on picking up tips. They had more tip kills than attack kills in the second set. We made that adjustment there. We played a little bit harder, frankly. We didn't like how we played in the first set and I think it showed in the second."
Â
Senior Libero Rachel Whipple
On The Team's Performance
"It feels good. I think we are finding our groove and the blockers and back row are clicking really well. We are doing a better job of trusting each other which makes my job easier. It was really fun and hopefully it continues tonight."
Â
On The Importance Of First Touches
"That is huge. If we can pass well and run our middles a lot it screws up their blockers on the other side. We pull that middle blocker to stay with ours and we get a one on one on the pin hitter. The first touch is so important. If you can pass and serve there is high possibility you are going to win. It is what we practice a lot and is very important."
Â
On Sweeping
"The biggest part is saving our bodies. Last night, going to four sets wasn't super awesome. Three sets lets us save our bodies."
Â
Senior Outside Justine Spann
"It is great. Being able to pass is definitely key. We can run our middles and the second the other team respects our middles, I get splits in the block. That definitely changes everything and it is great. We are really compatible as a team right now. While we are killing a team and then letting them back into it and making errors on our part. I hope we can keep it going tonight."
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