Friday, September 1
Boulder, Colo.
7:00 PM
Colorado
3-1,0-0
3
vs
0
Xavier
3-0,0-0
1
2
3
F
Xavier
16
20
10
0
Colorado
25
25
25
3
The team cheers after a Taylor Simpson kill.
Photo by: CUBuffs.com
Buffs Dominate Home Match Against Xavier
September 01, 2023 | Volleyball
Colorado has defeated its last four opponents in straight sets.
BOULDER - The Colorado women's volleyball team (4-1) handed the Xavier Musketeers (25-16, 25-20, 25-10) their first loss of the season Friday night. The Buffs have defeated their last four opponents without dropping a single set.
CU had an outstanding attacking night, hitting .452 while holding the Musketeers to a .070 attack percentage. The Buffs picked up 33 digs throughout the course of the evening, and setter Taylor Simpson led the team with eight. Outside hitter Lexi Hadrych led the Buffs in kills with 13 to finish with a .579 attack percentage.
First year Lily Dwinell set a new career high in kills for a single match with eight on 14 attempts and zero errors to close out the evening with a .571 hitting percentage. Defensively, she had five block assists.
"We built momentum throughout the match, and the energy was great," Dwinell commented. "We were playing well together. It made the match fun. We were able to get Xavier off their system a lot and that made our blocking a lot easier. Also with good ball control, we were able to put balls away."
Skyy Howard continued to be a dynamic force at the net, ending the night with a .545 attack percentage with seven kills. She made it difficult for the Musketeers to find the floor as she led CU in blocks with 4 total blocks.
Howard commented that preparation before the match helped her lock in on her hitters. "We were all mentally locked into Xavier's offensive patterns, and it was something that we had not really seen before," Howard said. "I was making sure that I knew my hitter, knew what was coming at us, and that I wasn't losing sight. This all helped me with blocking today."
The match also saw several new Buff faces. Bella Simkus and Emilea Stepaniuk made their season debuts while Ana Burilović made her career debut.
"Offensively, it was our best match of the season," said head coach Jesse Mahoney after the game. "It was also our best passing match. We passed a 2.5, and with the athleticism we have, it is going to be a problem for the other team. Xavier is a good team, and they do a lot of diverse things. I liked the fact that we got better in each set and that is what you saw in the last set. We really smothered them with our blocks. I am excited about the level we are playing. And we have a quick turnaround to play a good team tomorrow."
CU will face Charlotte (3-1) in their third and final game of the Colorado Classic tomorrow at 6 p.m. Currently, the Buffs are first in the Colorado Classic.
How It Happened
Set One:
The Buffs jumped out to an early lead in the first set with Hadrych achieving four kills in CU's first 10 points, forcing the Musketeers to use their first timeout at 10-4. After the timeout, CU continued to build their lead and extended it to nine at 16-7 off a kill by Dwinell. Simkus made her season debut at 19-10, and Emilea Stepaniuk made hers at 20-12. (put how many digs or kills she had). The Buffs finished off the set 25-16 with a kill by outside hitter Sydney Jordan.
Set Two:
The second set proved to be more of a battle for the Buffs as the two squads went point for point early on in the game. Simpson strung together the first serving run for the Buffs, giving them a 13-11 lead by the time a Xavier kill ended it. Colorado maintained their lead and extended it to six at 21-15 off a kill from Simpson. From there, Xavier couldn't close the gap and the CU ended the set 25-20 with a kill from Howard.
Set Three:
At 3-2, Dwinell earned her sixth kill of the night on an out-of-system play. The Buffs continued to extend their lead with Hadrych at the service line, and Dwinell's eighth kill of the night forced the Musketeers to use their first timeout of the set at 11-2. The pause in play didn't help XU recover though, as Howard earned three consecutive blocks over the course of three points. By the time Hadrych's service run ended, CU had a 14-3 lead.
At 19-5, Burilović made her career debut and started off strong with her first career ace. From there, the Buffs cruised to finish off the set 25-10, with a Musketeer error ending the match.
CU had an outstanding attacking night, hitting .452 while holding the Musketeers to a .070 attack percentage. The Buffs picked up 33 digs throughout the course of the evening, and setter Taylor Simpson led the team with eight. Outside hitter Lexi Hadrych led the Buffs in kills with 13 to finish with a .579 attack percentage.
First year Lily Dwinell set a new career high in kills for a single match with eight on 14 attempts and zero errors to close out the evening with a .571 hitting percentage. Defensively, she had five block assists.
"We built momentum throughout the match, and the energy was great," Dwinell commented. "We were playing well together. It made the match fun. We were able to get Xavier off their system a lot and that made our blocking a lot easier. Also with good ball control, we were able to put balls away."
Skyy Howard continued to be a dynamic force at the net, ending the night with a .545 attack percentage with seven kills. She made it difficult for the Musketeers to find the floor as she led CU in blocks with 4 total blocks.
Howard commented that preparation before the match helped her lock in on her hitters. "We were all mentally locked into Xavier's offensive patterns, and it was something that we had not really seen before," Howard said. "I was making sure that I knew my hitter, knew what was coming at us, and that I wasn't losing sight. This all helped me with blocking today."
The match also saw several new Buff faces. Bella Simkus and Emilea Stepaniuk made their season debuts while Ana Burilović made her career debut.
"Offensively, it was our best match of the season," said head coach Jesse Mahoney after the game. "It was also our best passing match. We passed a 2.5, and with the athleticism we have, it is going to be a problem for the other team. Xavier is a good team, and they do a lot of diverse things. I liked the fact that we got better in each set and that is what you saw in the last set. We really smothered them with our blocks. I am excited about the level we are playing. And we have a quick turnaround to play a good team tomorrow."
CU will face Charlotte (3-1) in their third and final game of the Colorado Classic tomorrow at 6 p.m. Currently, the Buffs are first in the Colorado Classic.
How It Happened
Set One:
The Buffs jumped out to an early lead in the first set with Hadrych achieving four kills in CU's first 10 points, forcing the Musketeers to use their first timeout at 10-4. After the timeout, CU continued to build their lead and extended it to nine at 16-7 off a kill by Dwinell. Simkus made her season debut at 19-10, and Emilea Stepaniuk made hers at 20-12. (put how many digs or kills she had). The Buffs finished off the set 25-16 with a kill by outside hitter Sydney Jordan.
Set Two:
The second set proved to be more of a battle for the Buffs as the two squads went point for point early on in the game. Simpson strung together the first serving run for the Buffs, giving them a 13-11 lead by the time a Xavier kill ended it. Colorado maintained their lead and extended it to six at 21-15 off a kill from Simpson. From there, Xavier couldn't close the gap and the CU ended the set 25-20 with a kill from Howard.
Set Three:
At 3-2, Dwinell earned her sixth kill of the night on an out-of-system play. The Buffs continued to extend their lead with Hadrych at the service line, and Dwinell's eighth kill of the night forced the Musketeers to use their first timeout of the set at 11-2. The pause in play didn't help XU recover though, as Howard earned three consecutive blocks over the course of three points. By the time Hadrych's service run ended, CU had a 14-3 lead.
At 19-5, Burilović made her career debut and started off strong with her first career ace. From there, the Buffs cruised to finish off the set 25-10, with a Musketeer error ending the match.
Team Stats
XU
CU
Kills
28
48
Errors
22
10
Attempts
86
84
Hitting %
.070
.452
Points
31.0
61.0
Assists
28
44
Aces
0
3
Blocks
3.0
10.0
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
13
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
5
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
7
Aces
0
Blocks
6
Players Mentioned
OH
/ VolleyballOH
/ VolleyballOH
/ VolleyballMB
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
MB
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
DS/L
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