No. 22 Colorado Falls to No. 8 ASU in Five-Set Thriller

Saturday, November 15

Boulder, Colo.

1 PM

Colorado

21-6,11-4Big 12

#8 Arizona State

22-3,13-1Big 12

Arizona St.

Colorado

No. 22 Colorado Falls to No. 8 ASU in Five-Set Thriller

November 15, 2025 | Volleyball

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Junior pin attacker Ana Burilovic had her 12th match this season with 20 or more kills

By: Malala Pyle, Assistant Director of Athletic Communication

BOULDER – The 22nd-ranked Colorado volleyball team (21-6, 11-4 Big 12) fell to No. 8 ASU (22-3, 13-1 Big 12) in five sets (25-19, 25-22, 18-25, 21-25, 15-12) at CU Events Center on Saturday, Nov. 15.

The Buffs went down 2-0 early to the Sun Devils, but fought back in two powerful, gritty sets to force a fifth. The match featured 25 tie scores and six lead changes, with CU maintaining the lead for much of set five. The Black and Gold fell narrowly in the fifth set, 15-12.

"I was really happy with our week, just in general, from what we did in practice and what we did on Thursday [against TCU]," head coach Jesse Mahoney stated. "This was some really good volleyball on both sides, obviously, but certainly on our side. All season, we've fought really hard, and our backs have been against the wall [before]. We've found a way to respond, and we did that today. We didn't quite get over the finish line, and they just had a player that we knew was coming. We couldn't stop it. But I'm really happy with where we are as a team heading into the last third of our season."

The Buffaloes out-blocked (16-10) and out-aced (8-4) the Sun Devils. Colorado hit .607 in the third set while holding ASU to .167 hitting in the third.

KEY PLAYERS:

Jr. PIN Ana Burilovic matched her season-high in aces with five. She also tallied 28 kills, hitting .382 (7e, 55 att), five digs and three blocks, including two solo blocks. This is her 12th match this season with 20 or more kills.
So. MB Maria Splawska matched her career-high in blocks with nine. She also recorded six kills, hitting .667 (0e, 9att), two digs and one assist.
Jr. PIN Lily Dwinell recorded a career-high in blocks with eight. She also saw five kills, seven digs, one ace and one assist.
Jr. PIN Sydney Jordan tallied her sixth double-double of the season, 12th of her career, with 12 digs and 10 kills. She also tallied two blocks (one solo) and one assist.
Sr. S Rian Finley recorded 41 assists, eight digs, two aces and one kill.
Jr. MB Cayla Payne scored 13 kills, hitting .444 (1e, 27att), four blocks (one solo block) and two digs.
Sr. DS/L Sarah Morton recorded six digs and five assists.
So. DS/L/S Katie Salonga tallied four assists and one dig.
Fr. S Audrey Asleson recorded three assists and one dig, and So. PIN Gwen Schiff saw one block.
For the Sun Devils, Noemie Glover recorded 31 kills and 10 digs.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

The Buffs and the Sun Devils traded points early in the first set, but the Buffs took the lead from a Burilovic kill and a Splawska-Dwinell block (8-5, CU). Colorado went on a four-point run, including three kills from Burilovic, assisted by Finley and Salonga (15-11, CU). An ace from Burilovic gave the Buffs momentum after a 10-0 run from the Sun Devils (22-18, ASU). Ultimately, Arizona State took set one, 25-19.
The second set began with a kill from Splawska that ended a 4-0 run from the Sun Devils (4-1, ASU). Dwinell brought the Buffs within two with a kill, followed by an ace (6-4, ASU). A kill from Splawska tied the game (8-8). The Buffs and the Sun Devils traded points once again, with kills from Splawska, Payne and Burilovic, as well as a Splawska-Schiff block (14-13, ASU). A solo block from Burilovic tied the match (15-15). Colorado called its first timeout and returned to the court for a Splawska kill (19-17, ASU). After three unanswered points, the Buffaloes called their second timeout (23-19, ASU). A kill from Burilovic, assisted by Asleson, forced the Sun Devils to call a timeout (24-22, ASU). Arizona State took the second set, 25-22.
Colorado and Arizona State traded points to begin the third set, with kills from Payne, Dwinell and Burilovic (10-10). Arizona State was forced to call a timeout after a solo block from Payne and a Payne-Burilovic block (12-10, CU). The Buffaloes took a six-point lead from a kill and an ace from Burilovic, as well as a Splawska-Dwinell block (19-13, CU). Two final kills from Burilovic saw the Buffs taking set three, 25-18.
The Black and Gold saw four unanswered points from the Sun Devils at the beginning of the set, with two aces and a kill from Burilovic (8-7, CU). A kill from Payne ended an Arizona State four-point run (15-14, CU). The Sun Devils called their second timeout after a Burilovic ace (18-16, CU). A kill from Payne put the Buffs at set point, and a solo block from Burilovic ended the set (25-21, CU).
The Buffs took the lead in the fifth set from a Burilovic kill (5-3, CU). Colorado went on a four-point run, including two aces from Finley (9-5, CU). Arizona State began to come back, but a Splawska-Dwinell block and a solo Splawska block kept the Black and Gold ahead (11-8, CU). A kill from Jordan sent the Sun Devils into their first timeout, quickly followed by a Colorado timeout (12-12). The Buffs called their second timeout after two ASU points (14-12, ASU). The Buffs battled with the Sun Devils, but Arizona State took the fifth set (15-12, ASU).

UP NEX

No. 22 Colorado goes back on the road for the final conference road trip of the season. The Buffs play at West Virginia on Nov. 19 at 4 p.m. MT and at Cincinnati on Nov. 21 at 4:30 p.m. MT. The matches will be streamed on ESPN+, and fans can follow along via live stats links on CUBuffs.com.

MATCH NOTES:

The Buffs move to 13-16 versus the Sun Devils all-time.
The Buffaloes got their first 3-2 loss of the season and are 6-1 in five-set matches.
Colorado had more blocks (16-10) and aces (8-4) than ASU.
Today's match's attendance totaled 2,736. This is the Buffs' largest crowd this season and 17th largest all-time. This is also the largest crowd in CU Events Center for a volleyball match since Sept. 16, 2022, when the Buffs defeated Colorado State in five sets.

For more information on the Colorado women's volleyball team, a complete schedule and results, please visit CUBuffs.com. Fans of the Buffs can follow the team on Instagram and on Twitter @CUBuffsVB.