Buffs Return Home to Take on West Virginia and No. 21 BYU

Wednesday, October 23

Boulder, Colo.

7 PM

Colorado

West Virginia

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Buffs Return Home to Take on West Virginia and No. 21 BYU

October 21, 2024 | Volleyball

Match Notes

Colorado will prep for its inaugural meeting with the Mountaineers and a rematch with the Cougars

By: Malala Pyle, Assistant Director of Athletic Communication

BOULDER – The Colorado volleyball team (10-9, 3-4 Big 12) finally returns home after back-to-back road trips to take on West Virginia (7-11, 1-6 Big 12) and No. 21 Brigham Young (12-6, 5-3 Big 12).

The Buffs will play the Mountaineers at CU Events Center on Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. MT and rematch the 21st-ranked Cougars on Oct. 25 at 7 p.m. MT. This is CU's first ever meeting with West Virginia and sixth matchup with BYU.

In its second week straight on the road, Colorado split its two matches against the Arizona schools. The Buffs came away with their ninth five-set match (sixth win) with their victory over the Wildcats (Oct. 16). CU went up against the 13th-ranked Sun Devils on Oct. 18 and lost in three.

Multiple Buffs saw outstanding performances against Arizona, including So. OH Sydney Jordan with her sixth double-double of the season and a career high 16 digs, So. OPP Lily Dwinell with a career high 20 kills, Sr. S Taylor Simpson with her third double-double of the season (seventh of her career), and Jr. DS/L Sarah Morton with not only another 20+ dig match but her 1,000th career dig as well.

THIS WEEK
MATCH #1 • Wednesday, October 23 • 7 p.m. MT
Colorado (10-9, 3-4 Big 12) vs. West Virginia (7-11, 1-6 Big 12)
CU Events Center • Boulder, Colo.
SERIES RECORD: First Meeting
TV: ESPN+
OPPONENT WEBSITE: WVUSports.com

MATCH #2 • Wednesday, October 25 • 7 p.m. MT
Colorado (10-9, 3-4 Big 12) vs. BYU (12-6, 5-3 Big 12)
CU Events Center • Boulder, Colo.
SERIES RECORD: 1-4, BYU Leads
LAST MEETING: L, 1-3 (September 26, 2024 • Provo, Utah)
STREAK: Lost 2 • LAST 10 MEETINGS: 1-4
TV: ESPN+
OPPONENT WEBSITE: BYU Cougars.com

FIRST SERVE (TL;DR)

CU is led by ninth-year head coach Jesse Mahoney, who has led the Buffs to a 138-118 (.539) record as CU's fifth head volleyball coach. Coach Mahoney has been extended through 2027 and has led the Buffs to three NCAA appearances.
For the first time since the 2010 season, Colorado is playing volleyball in the Big 12 Conference. The Buffs are 149-158 (.485) all-time in Big 12 conference play.
With her 13th dig of the match, Jr. DS/L Sarah Morton notched her 1,000th career dig last Wednesday at Arizona. She ended the match with 21 digs, her fifth match this season with 20 or more digs.
So. OPP Lily Dwinell reached a career-high 20 kills (4e, 45att, hitting .356) and led both teams in kills at Arizona (Oct. 16). She is currently averaging 2.25 kills per set and hitting .220 on the season.
So. OH Sydney Jordan picked up her sixth double-double of both season and career against Arizona with 16 kills (2e, 35att, hitting .400) and a career high 16 digs (Oct. 16).
Sr. S Taylor Simpson recorded her third double-double of the season, seventh of her career, with 52 assists and 13 digs against the Wildcats (Oct. 16).
CU had zero errors in the fifth set (hitting .429) versus Arizona. The Buffs also out-aced (8-7) and out-hit (.252-.228) Arizona, the 13th and eighth time doing so against opponents this season, respectively.

MISS ALABAMA: Jr. DS/L Sarah Morton joined the Buffs as a transfer this season from Auburn. She was awarded SEC Defensive Player of the Week as a freshman on Sept. 26, 2022, for her performance against Alabama. She totaled 773 digs, 192 assists and 42 aces for the Tigers. At Arizona on Oct. 16, Morton notched her 1,000th career dig with her 13th dig of the night. She finished the five-set win over the Wildcats with 21 digs.

DOUBLE OR NOTHING: So. OH Sydney Jordan recorded her sixth double-double of the season against Arizona (Oct. 16), her sixth of her career, with 16 kills and a career high 16 digs. This marks back-to-back weeks with double-doubles for Jordan. Sr. S Taylor Simpson recorded her third double-double of the season (seventh of her career), also against the Wildcats, with 52 assists and 13 digs.

WILD WILD WEST: This will be the inaugural meeting between the Buffs and the West Virginia Mountaineers. This is the second time this season Colorado will meet an opponent for the first time, the first being the Miami Hurricanes in the first tournament of nonconference play, the North Texas Invite (Aug. 31).

REMATCH VS. COUGARS: Colorado will face No. 21 BYU for the second time this season on Friday, Oct. 25. Earlier this season, the Buffs lost to the Cougars, 3-1, on the road in Provo (Sept. 26). The Black and Gold are playing in the sixth meeting all-time with BYU.

LONG HAUL: Last week against Arizona (Oct. 16), Colorado played its ninth five-set match of the season, matching the number of five-set matches played in the 2017 and 2018 seasons. The Buffs are 6-3 overall in five-set matches this season and played five five-set matches within the first 10 matches of the season -- the most five-setters in the first 10 matches in CU Volleyball history. CU's record for total five-set matches in a season was achieved in 2005 with 11 five-setters, and Colorado's record for five-set wins was achieved in 2006 and 2016 with seven -- the next five-set win in the 2024 season would match the program record for five-set wins in a single season.

For more information on the Colorado volleyball team, please visit cubuffs.com/vb. Fans of the Buffs can follow @cubuffsvb on Instagram, X, and Facebook.