Utes Sweep Buffaloes

SALT LAKE CITY – Colorado volleyball struggled to produce offense Sunday afternoon here, falling the No.11-ranked Utah in a sweep (25-18, 25-16, 25-20) as Utah head coach Beth Launiere picked up her 600^th career victory.

The Buffaloes (6-10 Pac-12) could not produce as the Utes (12-4 Pac-12) held Colorado to a .075 hitting percentage with only three CU athletes hitting positive.

Three Buffs ended the match with seven total kills, led by Alexia Kuehl who hit .312. Meegan Hart his .211 after starting the match with six kills and a hitting percentage greater than .400 before she became the main target for Utah. Leah Clayton added seven kills for a hitting percentage of .208. Jenna Ewert had 16 assists while Brynna DeLuzio was limited to just 10 as she picked up her 20^th double-double of her career with 10 assists and 10 digs.

Defensively, Colorado held its own up front with six blocks, led by Hart's four. Zoe Neverdowski had 13 digs from the libero position.

The major difference in the match came from the Utes' 43 kills compared to Colorado's 30, and the service game where Utah dominated with six aces and two errors to CU's two aces and five errors. Dani Drew's led all attackers with 16 kills and hit .205, while Madelyn Robinson put down 11. Sage Ka'aha'aina-Torres had 34 assists and 15 digs to lead the match in both categories.

The Buffaloes have now lost all seven matches on the road this season but will host Arizona State next Friday and Sunday to conclude action at home for the 2021 spring season.

HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST SET
The teams battled early as neither team could earn more than a one-point lead to a 10 all tie. Heading into the media timeout, the Utes went on a 4-0 run to take the first lead greater than one, pushing it to 17-14. Utah pushed the lead to 20-15 following a CU timeout. The point exchange continued as Utah hit set point at 24-17, sealing the set win two plays later.

SECOND SET
Things started out even before Utah went on a 4-0 scoring run to an 8-4 advantage, forcing a CU timeout. The lead held despite Hart posting her sixth kill while hitting .462 as Utah led 14-9. Utah stormed to set point at 24-15 as both teams traded points. The Utes ended the set at 25-16 behind Drews and Robinson each with 10 kills and hitting percentages greater than .300.

THIRD SET
An early challenge came as Colorado took an early 6-2 lead in the third. Colorado held its lead late at 10-6. Colorado's lead improved to 12-7 when Utah called timeout. The Utes began to close the gap to 13-12 on a 4-0 run, forcing CU into a timeout. After extending to 15-13, Utah went on another 4-0 run to 19-16, forcing another CU timeout. Utah hit the 20-point mark up four, then extended its run to six before Kuehl ended the run at 21-17. The Buffs went on a three-point run to close the gap to 23-20 before a block set up match point and finishing it off at 25-20.

QUOTES
Head Coach Jesse Mahoney
"We played a very good match Friday and unfortunately couldn't sustain that level today. We struggled to pass in the 6-2 so switched to the 5-1 which helped our passing game but we couldn't score in our 2-hitter rotations and Utah took advantage. We are looking forward to bouncing back next weekend."

Next Event

Team Stats

Leah Clayton

Meegan Hart

Alexia Kuehl

Sterling Parker

Players Mentioned

Leah Clayton

Brynna DeLuzio

Jenna Ewert

Meegan Hart

Alexia Kuehl

Zoe Neverdowski

Players Mentioned

Leah Clayton

Brynna DeLuzio

Jenna Ewert

Meegan Hart

Alexia Kuehl

Zoe Neverdowski